James Conlon’s long-term relationship with ‘Rigoletto’

Some conductors have an affinity for certain compositions, returning to them obsessively throughout their careers. James Conlon’s relationship with Verdi’s “Rigoletto” goes beyond a professional interest. The oft-revived warhorse, which he is conducting this month at Los Angeles Opera, is a work that has occupied his mind since adolescence.

Conlon’s association with “Rigoletto” began when he was a 12-year-old living in Queens, New York. It was early 1963, and the young musician had encountered Verdi’s opera for the first time as a student. Determined to channel his obsession in a creative way, he decided to direct and perform the opera in a neighborhood garage with the help of friends and local musicians.

“It was a total experience in theater for me,” Conlon said before a rehearsal of “Rigoletto” at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. At that age, he said, “you can only intuit the drama. But the magic of the music still speaks to you.”

His amateur production of “Rigoletto” was sung in English, with some cuts to the score. (A pianist performed the part of the orchestra.) Conlon played the title role — a tragic court jester whose plotting leads to a sad ending for those close to him.

Conlon and his miniature company created the costumes, sets and makeup for the production. They mounted only a few performances that summer and whatever money was raised through tickets was given away to a local charity.

During the production, Life magazine sent a photographer to capture the young actors in character. The photographs were never published, but Conlon kept some of the images and recently rediscovered them before the start of the L.A. production.

Conlon said that when he was a young student, his appetite for classical music and opera was practically insatiable. He joined a local company called the North Shore Opera, where he performed in the children’s chorus and busied himself in the backstage world.

“Rigoletto” wasn’t the only opera that Conlon bravely tackled as a budding maestro. He also mounted a garage production of Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” in 1962, which he revived two summers later. Shortly after that, puberty hit and Conlon’s voice changed, rendering him unable to perform as a boy singer.

When asked to rate his vocal abilities as a teenager, Conlon replied that his decision to become a conductor “says enough” about his singing talent.

Such an early encounter with “Rigoletto” might suggest the beginnings of a lifelong attachment, but it was not the case for Conlon. Aside from a concert performance in the ‘70s, Conlon said he did not conduct a full production of the Verdi opera until 1996 in Paris — close to 33 years after his initial brush with the opera.

Conlon has had a similarly elusive relationship with “Barber.” Despite his adolescent immersion in the Rossini opera, he has conducted a full production only once in his career in 1973. (Michele Mariotti conducted L.A.’s 2009 “Barber.”)

The production of “Rigoletto,” running through Dec. 18, is a staging that’s new to Los Angeles (from San Francisco Opera) and directed by Mark Lamos, starring baritone George Gagnidze. In his review, Times music critic Mark Swed wrote that “Conlon ... turned out to be this production’s star, creating a forbidding atmosphere and relentlessly driven drama.”

Conlon said that his adolescent introduction to “Rigoletto” helped to seal his love for music and conducting.

“By the time I was 13, I knew I wanted to conduct,” he said, adding that his career choice was partly a result of “an inability to do otherwise.”

Now 60, the conductor said that “Rigoletto” doesn’t necessarily get easier with time. He explained that conducting middle-period Verdi operas can be a far greater test of a maestro’s ability than pieces that are traditionally thought of as difficult, such as Wagner’s momentous “Ring” cycle, which he conducted last season.

“The challenges of anything you want to do well are great, and ‘Rigoletto’ is no exception,” Conlon said.

david.ng@latimes.com

Box office information: ‘Rigoletto’

Where: Los Angeles Opera, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles

When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8, 11 and 15; 2 p.m. Sunday and Dec. 18

Tickets: $20 to $270

Information: (213) 972-8001 or https://www.laopera.com

Running time: 2 hours, 35 minutes