Going into “La Bohème” with little knowledge of Puccini’s masterpiece, I was just a naive theater-goer seeing it fresh at its opening Saturday night at Chicago’s Lyric. It is beautifully directed by Melanie Bacaling - striking massive two-story sets and colorful, ever varying crowd scenes. Especially intriguing to me are scenes where we see anonymous action through the muslin curtained windows of shops and apartments, imparting vividly a sense of life in every nook and cranny of the stage.
And all this action atop the magnificent and perfectly polished Lyric Opera Orchestra (conducted by Jordan de Souza), and a libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, that in supratitles projected above the stage renders the original Italian in fresh and very funny English.
Set in wintry Paris in 1888 - the Eiffel Tower is under construction in the backdrop - its plot centers on the love story between the poet Rodolfo (tenor Pene Pati) and seamstress Mimi (soprano Ailyn Pérez), both poor and she suffering from consumption (tuberculosis in modern parlance).
Rodolfo falls immediately for Mimi. And as Ailyn Pérez sings Mimi’s role, I found myself skipping the translation.This transcendentally wonderful soprano, expressing in synchrony with Puccini’s lush score, articulates what is in her heart and mind - no words required - that she has fallen for Rodolfo hard and quickly. Through four acts we see them fall in together, live happily, separate when Rodolfo realizes he is too poor to sustain Mimi, then reunite as she faces her final hours.
But I saw it also the story of two struggling artists - Rodolfo, and his roommate painter Marcello (baritone Will Liverman) living through winter in an underheated flat. Surrounded by their posse of cohorts, they are hungry for love, and also just plain hungry - so a bit like “Friends” but with less resources. (La Boheme is also quite a bit like “Rent,” the 1996 Broadway musical and film adapted from it.)
Juxtaposed and nearly as important as the relationship of Mimi and Rodolfo is the tempestuous on-again off-again relationship of Marcello to Musetta (Gabriella Reyes), an emancipated woman who’s a strident gold digger, but her aggressive demeanor belies a heart of gold. For me, Musetta steals the show. Also notably delightful are two members of Rodolfo’s crew - philosopher Colline (Peixin Chen) and musician Schaunard (Ian Rucker), who are entertaining as actors along with excellent singing.
But the core of “La Bohème” is the music, and these principals are outstanding. The opera also features the 60-person Lyric Opera Chorus, led by Chorus Director Michael Black, plus the Uniting Voices Chicago children’s choir led by Josephine Lee. So the stage is packed.
If you have never seen opera before, Lyric Opera’s “La Bohème” is a can’t miss experience, and comes highly recommended.
Remaining performance dates for La Bohème are March 22, 25, 28, 31, April 3m, 6m, 7, and 12. All performances take place at the Lyric Opera House, 20 North Wacker Drive, Chicago.
*This review is also featured on https://www.theatreinchicago.com/!
