There are a lot of interesting aspects to this little-performed Mozart opera. About a third of the way into my first viewing of La clemenza di Tito (1791), I found myself thinking that WCO’s excellent chamber ensemble and a superb cast of singers were turning this turkey opera seria (dated, convoluted, improbable plot) into a rather enjoyable musical experience, but as it went along, Mozart’s music magic and the cast’s stellar vocals made me start to care about these highly improbable characters: an emperor (Tito) who encourages truthful insolence and forgives an attempt on his life by his close friend (Sesto), after Sesto sets fire to Rome as cover for his assassination attempt and stabs the wrong person, all to win the love of an ambitious woman (Vitellia) who challenges whether he has the “spirit” to win her, said woman being motivated by anger and wanting to avenge her loss of status, who is on again off again in scheduling the assassination, then in a remarkable change of heart, decides to admit her guilt to try to save her controlee, a really sweet and honorable guy, while the reluctant assassin’s friends implore Tito to spare the life of Sexto because they are sure he will be a loyal subject from now on. If you had trouble getting through that sentence, you got a taste of the opera. All in a day at Roman court, “Game of Thrones” style. In fairness, the opera is based on the Roman emperor Titus Vespasianus, the only historical person in the opera, and the title does translate to “the clemency of Titus”, and history does report he was known for his leniency towards those who conspired against him. Not an entirely selfless position, he sought to disarm enmity and intrigue by forgiveness.
Washington Concert Opera Orchestra and Chorus with Conductor Antony Walker and cast of La clemency di Tito. Photo by Caitlin Oldham; courtesy of Washington Concert Opera.
But that was then; this is now, and the extreme positions in the plot viewed from the 21st century made it difficult for me to go with that flow. Also hard to believe was the fact that this is WCO’s first performance of an opera by Mozart, though Artistic Director and Conductor Antony Walker stated that he had wanted to perform it for over twenty years; kudos to him for bringing it forward. Part of Washington Concert Opera’s charge is to bring lesser-known works of great artistic value to Washington audiences. Perhaps it is by chance that Tito, a highly political opera from the nineteenth century, premiering in Vienna a few months after the French Revolution, reappears in the politically charged time of today. WCO’s production reminded me of my first reaction to Mozart’s Così fan tutte; an absurd plot that initially diminished my ardor for the opera, but on subsequent viewings I looked past that distracting aspect and became sensitized to the forces at play. I grew to love Così. Washington Concert Opera’s La clemenza di Tito managed that conversion over the course of three hours. Emperor Tito found an epiphany in facing his most difficult moral dilemma: to risk making law meaningless if he spared the life of his friend who he believed to be of good heart. Of course, the story only works because his friend fails in his assassination attempt and nobody dies; otherwise, I present you with the “Macbeths, Italian style”. I enjoyed reading the libretto and found myself pausing to reflect on several statements in recitatives, such as Sesto telling Vitellia, “I will do anything for you”, and Tito’s claim that the only happiness afforded him as ruler by the gods was to reward virtue. The opera makes a strong statement, if a little over the top, about morality in governance and how people’s potential for goodness can tip in the wrong direction – Sexto’s lamentation that, “I never thought it so hard to undertake villainy”, though it brought a laugh, is thought for us all. I would have required Vitellia and Sesto to do community service and required them to memorize Lovelace: “I could not love thee (Dear) so much, Lov’d I not Honour more”. I do wonder, if as written, whether this opera can be successfully staged for today’s audience, or if instead, concert opera treatment is optimum. Some musicologists have said Mozart’s and Mazzolà’s deletions from Metastasio’s text reduced the dramatic impact.
Tamara Wilson as Vitellia and Edgardo Rocha as Tito. Photos by Caitlin Oldham; courtesy of Washington Concert Opera.
Because of the limited play it had received, I had long assumed that Tito was one of Mozart’s early, less popular operas. Not so. This is Mozart’s next to last opera and in fact, most of The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflöte, 1791) was composed before Tito premiered, just three months before Mozart’s death at age 35 and not quite a month before The Magic Flute. These followed his big three of Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, and Così fan tutte in 1785, 1789, and 1790. La clemenza di Tito was undertaken as a commission to compose an opera seria for the coronation of Leopold II. The libretto was taken from the work of Metastasio, modified to a version one third shorter, as Mozart emphasized the vocal additions, working with librettist Mazzolà to create in Mozart’s words “a real opera”, mostly by adding opera buffa elements to opera seria. It is thought that despite working on The Magic Flute and other substantial works, he accepted the commission for the money which he needed and to show his prowess with opera seria, the genre favored by Leopold II’s wife, though it was fading in popularity. It is believed that workload stress contributed to his becoming ill and dying at such an early age. The court reception of the work seems to have been boredom at best (everyone was tired from a day of partying), but his wife, Constanza promoted the work to maintain Mozart’s legacy and provide support for their three sons. The opera achieved considerable popularity until around 1830 when it dropped out of view for a hundred years. Revived in the 1950’s, it has managed to stay in the repertoire though seldomly performed, likely due to audiences not connecting with the plot line and shortcomings in the score, mainly perceived by musicologists. Importantly, for a substantial opera composed in a little over two months, the composer did not have a chance to do revisions; had Mozart made it to 40, there might have been an even better version. I didn’t find the music in this opera as wonderful as Figaro, certainly, but some of that may have been the constraints of opera seria. I remember one Sexto aria using the slow then fast format that seemed to me to break the connection with the emotion of the aria, when it moved to the fast section.
Stephanie Doce as Sesto and Meridian Prall as Annio. Photo by Caitlin Oldham; courtesy of Washington Concert Opera.
Mozart composed La Clemenza di Tito for 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 1 basset clarinet, 1 basset horn, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, and strings, with harpsichord for recitatives. WCO employed a chamber ensemble of about 30 players and a 20-member chorus for this production, smaller than their usual full orchestra and chorus for their performances. Clarinetist Jonathan Gunn was featured playing the basset clarinet and horn accompanying arias by Sesto and Vitellia. Mr. Gunn was impressive in playing the basset instruments with one peccadillo for me. Having him stand by the singers was distracting for me. I was captivated by the emotion of Sesto’s singing when he appeared and would have preferred to keep my focus there. Just me I guess. according to my wife, but I would have preferred that he remain in the orchestra, even given the beautiful sound he was making. Mozart’s music, always melodious and pleasing, was impressively delivered under Conductor Antony Walker’s direction. It was a special treat to hear music by Mozart I had not heard before. The Washington Concert Opera Chorus fulfilled Mozart’s role for them as a public gallery and as always, added delight to the performance.
l to r: Meridian Prall as Annio, Raven McMillon as Servilla, and Matthew Scolin as Publio. Photo by Caitlin Oldham; courtesy of Washington Concert Opera.
Sometimes the singers in an opera elevate the work, bringing it to life with an intensity far above my expectations. This was the case for WCO’s La Clemenza di Tito. Renown soprano Tamara Wilson, a favorite in DC and well known to opera fans across the U.S. and Europe, gave a diva performance as the self-centered but complicated Vitellia, singing beautifully as her voice commanded the room. Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Douche in a pants role as Sexto was stunning, a definite wow, in her performance as the conflicted lover/friend/assassin. She had a lovely voice and sang with great emotion. It might have been Sexto’s opera had not WCO brought in Uruguayan tenor Edgardo Rocha, an opera superstar in Europe, to sing the role of Tito. He lived up to the billing, bringing a smooth, pleasing delivery to a Tito committed to being a caring and merciful leader. One could listen to him all night; he could become a popular crooner of love ballads, I bet. He made me long for a modern day Tito. Sexto’s friend Annio is another pants role sung by mezzo-soprano Meridian Prall, adding her lovely voice and engaging vocals to the action as Sexto’s friend and the true love of Servilia performed by soprano Raven McMillon. Her singing and comportment as Sexto’s sister and Annio’s love interest made me wish Mozart had written her a bigger role. The scene, where she reveals to Tito that she is in love with Annio and does not wish to be the queen, came as a surprise to me that she had the courage, but then a bigger surprise, as a modern audience member: Tito gives thanks “that one has been found who will dare to speak an unwelcome truth”. Matthew Scolin, a WCO veteran, brought his excellent voice and official substance to the role of Publio, the commander of the Guard. And yes, it being Mozart, there were marvelous ensemble numbers. It is my fondest wish that all these singers be brought back for future performances.
On the sides, Tamara Wilson as Vitellia and clarinetist Jonathan Gunn.
Ah, what an entertaining evening of great singing and music playing! After enjoying so many performances of Washington Concert Opera, I should have had more faith in Maestro Walker. I went home feeling good that the worrisome potential of a turkey was transformed into a beautiful dove of peace, and maybe even a little inspired that there was still deep goodness in us, waiting to be tapped.
The Fan Experience: Washington Concert Opera’s performance of La Clemenza di Tito was scheduled for March 1 in Lisner Auditorium. The performance, sung in Italian with supertitles in English, lasted about two and a half hours with one twenty-minute intermission.
WCO has scheduled a third production this season, Verdi’s Luisa Miller for April 13 (note - back to the usual Sunday performance scheduling).
Peter Russell, General Director of Vocal Arts DC, presented a pre-opera talk and provided program notes. His talks are impressively detailed and informative.
In my experience, all the seats in Lisner Auditorium are fine for viewing the performance, but the sound is probably better towards the center of the auditorium. The seats in Lisner Auditorium were upgraded over the summer, more legroom for the orchestra section and more comfort for all. However, be aware, the side terrace seats continue to have very limited legroom. Parking on the street around the auditorium is catch as catch can; be sure to read the signs! Metro is two blocks away. WCO has a visitor web page with directions and parking info, helpful in finding nearby parking lots.