Review of reviews: Stage

The Broken Jug/The Dwarf

Los Angeles Opera, Los Angeles

(213) 972-8001

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★★★

The Nazis banned works by Viktor Ullmann and Alexander Zemlinsky for a simple reason, said Mark Swed in the Los Angeles Times. “They were Jewish.” The Los Angeles Opera has now rescued two unfairly “obscure operas” by the composers. Perky music sets the tone for slapstick in Ullmann’s The Broken Jug, as a provincial judge tries to cover up his attempted seduction of a young woman. “We must cry through laughter, though”: Just after completing the opera, Ullmann went to a concentration camp. Far different in tone is Zemlinsky’s The Dwarf, in which the title character pines for an uncaring princess. “Zemlinsky’s ability to handle complex emotion” and his vibrant orchestral palette make this an important work. A more visually imaginative staging, though, might have brought in new fans.

Outlandish staging and elaborate sets are perfectly fine for well-known works, said Timothy Mangan in the Orange County, Calif., Register. But director Darko Tresnjak knows that for unfamiliar works, the director must let the music speak for itself. “Before we can deconstruct these operas, we must see them in traditional productions.” Tresnjak’s unobtrusive approach also lets us properly enjoy the performances. “James Johnson provided a suitably pompous and greasy judge” in The Broken Jug. Mary Dunleavy made the princess richly cruel, while Rodrick Dixon sang “with abandon” as the Dwarf. Their fearless performances result in a double bill that turns out to be not just a scholarly dusting-off of rarities but “a must-see evening of opera.”