Review: COSÌ FAN TUTTE at MN Opera

Love, distrust, and mayhem are in the air for a short time while Minnesota Opera’s ravishing production of Mozart’s comedic piece, Così Fan Tutte, delights audiences.

The 260+ year old piece has been modernized for Twin Cities audiences by moving the story into modern day MN. Not only does it prove more relatable but it also demonstrates that the story certainly transcends time.

Two pairs of lovers (Fiordiligi & Guglielmo, Dorabella & Ferrando) seem destined for the altar but when the gentlemen’s friend, Don Alfonso, offers a friendly wager that woman can be just as duplicitous and unfaithful to their partners as men, all may not be as the couples have hoped.

Guglielmo and Ferrando pretend to be shipped out for military service, leaving their grieving fiancee at home. Unknown to them, their loves have disguised themselves and sought to tempt the other’s partner into being unfaithful. When they are forced to take desperate measures to force the women to entertain their advances, they begin to realize things about their partners that they may not have intended to learn.

While the original text has the two pairs ending up with one another in the end, Stage Director Doug Scholz-Carlson and his team have concocted a clever way to engage the audience in a whole new way. At Intermission of each performance, the audience is asked to vote on how they would like the opera to end. No one knows which of the three endings will play out until the moment it happens. Not only does this create a sense of adventure for the audience but also the actors, who are informed of the decision mid-act, all leading to a surprise for all.

Not only is the “twist” on the story engaging but the score is one of Mozart’s most playful, ensuring the audience is in for a great night of music, especially those who might not have seen a full Mozart opera previously. As always, the MN Opera Orchestra is in top form as evidenced by the thunderous applause they garnered right off the bat with the overture. Under the leadership of principal director, Christopher Franklin, they bring this bright and beautiful score to vibrant life.

Not to mention the talent on stage. The six main players are all triumphant in their perspective roles, it truly would be a disservice to single out any one specific company member because they all bring a level of charm, wit, longing, and torment to their character’s plight with full commitment and sublime vocals.

Così Fan Tutte is not only gorgeously performed but it is also beautiful to look at. Paul Whitaker’s set and Amber Brown’s costume designs are simple but very effective. Whitaker’s use of lighting and bare bones set pieces elevate each scene, sometimes so subtly that you hardly notice the lighting is changing until suddenly it feels like a different time of day. While Brown’s clever designs to inform the audiences of which couple is which, just will the color palettes utilized is remarkable genius. The best part, their elements never detract from the talent on stage, they simply add just enough magic to the piece to make it that much better to witness.

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