In the Bible, the name of the Princess of Judea is never mentioned. In his 1893 play, Oscar Wilde gave the teenage seductress a name: Salome. In 1905, Richard Strauss completed his opera with his own libretto, based on the German translation of Wilde's play. The Lyric production recreates Sir David McVicar's 2008 production; the thrilling revival is directed by Julia Burbach. Soprano Jennifer Holloway makes her Lyric debut as the obsessed and seductive Salome.
The Lyric setting for Herod's kingdom is pre-war fascist Italy, which eerily echoes the America currently in the news. The despotic King Herod is brilliantly acted and sung by tenor Alex Boyer in his Lyric debut. Herod's marriage to Herodias is not a love match but a power consolidation. German mezzosoprano Tanja Ariane Baumgartner is gloriously imperious as Herodias. Watching her vengeful pleasure at Salome's demand for the head of Jochanaan (John the Baptist) is darkly comic with bloodlust and revenge. Baumgartner's role is not central, but what we hear of her rich and velvety mezzo leaves a lasting impression.
Bass-baritone Nicholas Brownlee makes a smashing Lyric debut as Jochanaan. He is first heard offstage where the holy man is being held prisoner. Brownlee's voice projects to the rafters, even though it's heard offstage. Every note is full and clear without a hitch in the lower range. I have to commend Brownlee's physical prowess as Jochanaan is thrown about the stage like a child's toy. That agility would be the work of the revival choreographers, Noelle Kayser and Emily Piercy, on display. Brownlee would be a middleweight boxer, but his moves are like a gymnast's.
Jennifer Holloway as Salome gives a bravura performance. She is on stage for most of the opera, and her character is in a near-fugue state of obsession for Jochanaan. Her soprano never falters, even as the emotion of the role reaches the delusional. Watching her have that necrophilic exchange with Jochanaan's head was not for the faint of heart. The wig and makeup design by John Metzner is cinema-worthy. The moment when Salome pitches Jochanaan's head down the stairs is just like Bruce Dern's head bouncing down the stairs in the Bette Davis movie, Hush Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964).
There are other noteworthy cast members. Tenor Ryan Capozzo plays the lovestruck Narraboth, and mezzosoprano Catherine Martin plays his Page, who tries to warn him away from Salome. Several Ryan Center residents are in the supporting cast. I recognized bass-baritone Christopher Humbert Jr. as a soldier. He sang with tenor Sankara Harouna on Sunday in the Park With Lyric. Benjamin Sokol Jr., Sihao Hu, and Daniel Luis Espinal play Nazarenes and Jews scattered around the palace, witnessing the macabre events. Scott Conner makes quite an impression as the executioner-soldier. Historically, the condemned prisoner is stripped naked before the axe drops. In this execution, Conner is starkers when he emerges from the cistern holding Jochanaan's head.
The set design is done in the Brutalist style with a blue-gray palette. The infamous Dance of the Seven Veils is performed on a moving stage and features additional grayscale projections by Studio 59 Video Designers. It was visually spectacular and no less than what I have come to expect from Lyric productions. Tomáš Netopil conducts the Lyric Opera Orchestra for this run of Salome. The orchestra was in fine form, but the brass in particular overwhelmed the voices at the climax of the performance. The finale is among the most dramatic I have seen.
Salome runs through February 14, at the Lyric Opera, 20 N Wacker Drive. For more information and a look at the program book, please visit www.lyricopera.org
For more information on this and other productions, see theatreinchicago.com.
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