Opera
'Agamemnon': Tragic Magic

By Joseph McLellan
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, April 28, 2003; Page C04

Opera returned to its roots over the weekend in Catholic University's Hartke Theatre, and found new strength in the process. Opera originated around 1600 in Italy in an attempt to restore the long-lost genre of Greek tragedy and ended up turning into something quite different. Andrew Earle Simpson's one-act opera "Agamemnon," which was given its world premiere by the university's Benjamin T. Rome School of Music, is more faithful to its model, Aeschylus's tragedy of the same name, than any opera I know on a subject from classical antiquity.

Undiluted Greek tragedy is not to every taste, but when it is done properly, as it was in this production, it can have a shattering impact. Ideally, it is a seamless blend of poetry, music (solo and choral) and dance, rooted in ancient mythology and conveying a stern moral: Evil deeds are eventually punished by inexorable fate; moral laws are as strict and self-enforcing as the law of gravity.

Like most Greek tragedies, this one focuses on a dysfunctional family. Agamemnon, the Greek commander in chief in the Trojan War, sacrifices his daughter Iphigenia to secure favorable winds for his army's departure. During his 10-year absence, his wife, Klytemnestra, takes a lover, Aegisthus, Agamemnon's enemy in an ancestral blood feud. When Agamemnon returns, bringing a Trojan princess, Kassandra, as his slave, Klytemnestra murders them.

This story is told with concentrated power in Simpson's music, modern in idiom but respectful of traditional values. The libretto is by Sarah Brown Ferrario, a Greek scholar with a knack for poetry and drama. As in the original, a major role is played by the chorus, which in this production is divided among ensemble singers, five solo singers and five dancers from El Salvador's Contemporary Dance Theatre.

Sunday's performance was dominated by Jessi Baden, vocally powerful and physically imposing in the role of Klytemnestra. As Agamemnon, Jeffrey Petryk gave a fine characterization with a rich and powerfully expressive voice. Excellent support was provided by Amy Kwon as Kassandra and Jose Sacin as Aegisthus. Robert Garofalo conducted the CUA Symphony Orchestra with precision.