Mentzer’s Sense of Drama Serves Range of Repertoire

Metropolitan Opera mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer has been widely acclaimed for her singing of operatic “travesty” parts--the roles of young men such as Mozart’s Cherubino or Strauss’ Octavian.

She has, of course, branched out beyond that repertory.

But her success in it has much to do with her dark-toned vocalism and deep dramatic expressivity, qualities abundantly in evidence in her recital Sunday afternoon at the Irvine Barclay Theatre as part of the Summer SongFest ’98 sponsored by UC Irvine.

Martin Katz was her expert accompanist.

Dressed stylishly in an iridescent cerise-and-purple, double-tiered silk cape over a black gown, Mentzer sang a set of Schubert songs, followed by Mahler’s intense “Ruckert” lieder.

After intermission, she sang three jokey Satie melodies, two insinuating cabaret songs from the turn of the century (“Je te veux” and “La diva de l’empire”) and a group of five folk songs from her native Blue Ridge Mountains.

For the Americana, Mentzer drew on a deeper contralto coloring that had not always mixed easily into her hauntingly hollow and strong, tensile voice.

The voice itself was not always alluring. It could thin out on top. It could become pebbly with a rapid vibrato. It could vary in color and strength.

But she used it dramatically. She knew how to invest a song with character, and she did not disdain to become an entertainer, getting across the text with a wink or a nod or a tongue in the cheek.

Arguably, her most deeply expressive moments came in Mahler’s “Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen” and the folk song “Poor Wayfarin’ Stranger.”

She closed the program with an insouciant, clipped and almost throwaway account of “Una voce poco fa” from Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia.”

Mentzer sang two encores: “Voi che sapete” from Mozart’s “Le nozze di Figaro” and the American folk song “He’s Gone Away.”

From the stage, Mentzer announced several changes because of errors in the printed program--including omitted or incorrect texts. UC Irvine faculty member Rosemary Hyler, director of the summer program, said later that the errors originated in Mentzer’s New York manager’s office.