The Question of Perception
by Gaëtan L. Charlebois
Aria Umezawa is a Toronto-Born, Half-Japanese, comic book-loving opera director, who believes in the unlimited potential of opera. She most recently directed the North American premiere of Cavalli’s Artemisia with Helios Opera in Boston, as well as Hindemith’s Hin und Zurück and Milton Granger’s Talk Opera as part of Opera 5’s Opera Eats. She also writes and directs the increasingly popular webseries Opera Cheats, which explains opera conventions, and deconstructs operatic plots for the uninitiated.
CHARPO: Why La voix humaine? It's not exactly light Fringe fun!
UMEZAWA: It's true that many of the shows that appear in Fringes across the world are light, and fun, but it certainly isn't true of all the productions. Last year at the Toronto Fringe Festival, for example, one of the Best of Fringe selections was Judith Thompson's Rare, which was a very moving piece written and performed by actors born with Down's Syndrome. I think seeing something unexpected and out of the ordinary is what makes Fringes so much fun!
The challenge for us was picking a piece that would speak to a theatre audience but still showcase opera in all its glory. La voix humaine was originally conceived as a one-act play by Jean Cocteau, and then set to music by Francis Poulenc. Because its roots are in theatre, it fits the time limit, and the music is brilliant. It seemed like a perfect match.
CHARPO: There is the play and the opera - have you used both as sources or stuck with the opera?
UMEZAWA: Conveniently, the libretto for the piece is the play. The text is virtually unaltered. So audiences will get to experience the awesome synergy of Cocteau and Poulenc. However in researching the piece, I watched stagings of both. Ingrid Bergman's version is absolutely heartbreaking.
