Music Reviews : New Principals in Opera Pacific ‘Butterfly’

Some things change. Some don’t.

Opera Pacific introduced an alternate pair of leading singers in its handsome, hand-me-down production of “Madama Butterfly” at the Orange County Performing Arts Center on Sunday afternoon. Expressive stress and interpretive detail shifted in the process, but the quality of the generally conservative production remained solid.

In the demanding title role, Elizabeth Hynes of the New York City Opera proved histrionically less vulnerable, vocally less fragile than her predecessor, Yoko Watanabe. Hynes is a spinto, not a lyric soprano, and, as such, can work on a broader emotive scale.

One might have wished for a bit more expansion in the high climaxes. Like her predecessor, Hynes opted against the high D-flat in the entrance aria. A bit more pianissimo shimmer also might have been welcome in passages of introspection. Still, one had to admire her dynamic generosity and her canny dramatic security.

She traced the arching cantilena with ample purity and shaded the parlando passages deftly. She wrenched pathos from the text without distortion or exaggeration. Unlike many a colleague, she actually savors the value of sudden stillness in moments of inner turmoil. This was an intelligent performance.

Hans Ashbaker, the young American tenor who succeeded Jonathan Welch (and replaced the originally scheduled Florin Georgescu) left a promising if somewhat troubling impression as Lt. Pinkerton. He looked fine, moved well, enacted the platitudes of the Ugly American hero with nearly disarming charm.

He sang sensitively, even softly when possible, with sweet and sensuous tones that really caressed the romantic line. He tended to strain for impact in moments of passion, however, leading one to fear that he is dangerously cast in a role requiring much vocal heft. He might be well advised, at this stage of his career, to concentrate on lighter, bel-canto challenges.

Gail Dubinbaum repeated her assertive Suzuki. Andreas Poulimenos returned as a stern and exceptionally sonorous Sharpless.

Gordon Ostrowski’s busy staging scheme looked more cohesive on this occasion. In the all-too-vibrant pit, John Mauceri’s fervent conducting elicited reasonably polished responses from an orchestra that had sounded ragged the night before.

Sometimes the gala opening-night performance really functions as a dress rehearsal.

This cast performs Friday, and in a run-out at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert Jan. 22. The Yoko Watanabe/Jonathan Welch cast gives its final performances tonight and Saturday, while Hynes and Welch are paired in a matinee Sunday.