LAKME
Coloratura Diana Walker enthusiastically subscribes to the Joan Sutherland school of diction, which is to say she swallows her consonants. So she might have been singing Sanskrit, though the rest of the opera was sung in English. Sutherland actually uses poor diction so that she can stretch out her vowel singing, which helps sustain the once-beautiful timbre of her voice; she consciously sacrifices intelligibility for sound. It’s a questionable choice, for hard, sharp consonants increase projection and focus, and provide a context.
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
There was also much to take in visually. Wally Coberg’s sets of bamboo, stone, and greenery, and Renee Starr Liepins’s colorful costumes were stunning. David Gately’s direction was very effective, suffering mainly from the stodgy tempi coming from the pit. The act two ballet was entertaining, though it too was slow, again because of the music.
