Boston Symphony's staging of Barber's 'Vanessa' called drab and ineffective

The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s concert staging of Samuel Barber’s opera "Vanessa" at Symphony Hall came off as drab and ineffective, according to a review by David Allen. The critique covered the second of two performances on Saturday last week. Allen noted that "Vanessa," which Barber wrote to a libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti and premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 1958, has recently returned to favor and was presented as the centerpiece of the orchestra’s "E Pluribus Unum" festival honoring America’s 250th anniversary.

The hall was only half full, and the review said simply scheduling the work was not enough; the Boston Symphony has substantial resources and a history of championing American composers under Serge Koussevitzky. The review criticized the conducting of music director Andris Nelsons, saying he appeared insufficiently familiar with the score, frequently consulted his score, allowed imprecisions and balance problems that at times overwhelmed singers, and let dance rhythms slacken.

Individual singers drew mixed notices: Samantha Hankey’s Erika was praised, Jennifer Holloway was said to have the voice for Vanessa but seemed unsure and missed an entrance that required stopping and restarting the performance, and Ganson Salmon, who replaced an indisposed tenor, was largely inaudible.

Other performances singled out as effective included Patrick Carfizzi (a late replacement), Anne Sofie von Otter, Wei Wu and the combined offstage choruses.

Key Topics

Culture, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Hall, Andris Nelsons, Samuel Barber, Vanessa