Jacques Offenbach’s comic opera The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein was the runaway hit of the 1867 Universal Exposition in Paris, overwhelming more high-minded entries such as Verdi’s Don Carlos, and it’s leading lady Hortense Schneider was the toast of Paris. These days, performances are something of a rarity, so the current production by Opera Theatre of St. Louis would be welcome even if it weren’t top-notch.
But top-notch it is. Nearly all of the principal singers are perfect in their roles. The Opera Theatre orchestra, despite a bit of scrappiness here and there, carries the score off admirably. Add in a splendid supporting cast, John Going’s inventive stage direction and James Wolk’s colorful, fairy-tale pop-up book set, and this Grand Duchess of Gerolstein could well be as big a hit in St. Louis today as it was in Paris nearly 150 years ago.
The story, partly inspired by the literal saber-rattling taking place in Europe at the time, gets plenty of laughs poking fun and military pomposity. The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein’s love affair with all things – and all men – military is bankrupting the treasury. Baron Puck urges a marriage of convenience with the rich but goofy Prince Paul but the Duchess is too interested in promoting Private Fritz – the current object of her military lust – to the rank of Field Marshall, to the great annoyance of the easily riled General Boum. Mix in the fact that Fritz is really in love with the bucolic Wanda, stir lightly, spice with a typically lively and tuneful Offenbach score, and you’ve got a recipe for that tasty Gallic soufflé known as the opera bouffe.
Mezzo Phyllis Pancella lights up the stage in the title role, managing to be both sexy and funny at the same time. True, she’s willing to sacrifice tonal purity for comic effect at times, but that’s an approach with a long and distinguished history. And, as they used to say in the commercials, “it really, really works”. Bass-baritone Timothy Nolen demonstrates the same comic finesse as the pompous General Boum that he showed us as Don Pasquale in 1998. Soprano Tonna Miller is funny and winsome as Wanda, and baritone Carleton Chambers’ Prince Paul is a hilariously Monty Python-esque upper-class twit. The only disappointment is tenor Harold Gray Meers as Fritz. He’s an accomplished comic actor but lacks the vocal power to make himself intelligible beyond the first several rows of the house. That’s a pity, since the character has some very funny songs.
But that’s a relatively minor complaint. Overall, OTSL’s Grand Duchess of Gerolstein is a fast-paced, funny and even giddy evening of musical theatre that shouldn’t be missed. You can see it through June 23rd at the Loretto-Hilton Center on the Webster U. campus; call 314-961-0644 for ticket information.