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Tuned in to 'Rigoletto'
Singing this jester's role is no laughing matter, but one baritone's rich voice and dedication to the role make him a natural.
By JOHN FLEMING, Times Performing Arts Critic
© St. Petersburg Times
published April 4, 2002
The title role in Rigoletto has a special problem. As Tito Gobbi, the great baritone who sang the role many times, succinctly described it: "That damned hump!"
Rigoletto is the hunchbacked jester of Verdi's opera and perhaps the ultimate test for a baritone. Mark Rucker, who has the role in this weekend's Opera Tampa production, tries not to make the character too much of a grotesque.
"I think of Rigoletto as being deformed, but not to the extent that you have to be Quasimodo to do it," Rucker said. "He's got a hump, he's got a bad leg. It's a tiring, physical role."
Rigoletto, premiered in 1851, was the opera that made Verdi's reputation. It's a fast-moving, accessible work that pits the jester against the rakish, corrupt Duke of Mantua. As the result of a curse, Rigoletto's daughter, Gilda, is seduced by the Duke, who has the opera's most famous tune, La donna e mobile (Women are fickle). Rigoletto hires an assassin to kill the Duke, but Gilda is stabbed instead.
"Rigoletto does everything wrong. Everything. There's not one right move that he makes in the entire opera," said Rucker.
The relationship between a father and daughter is a perennial theme in Verdi operas, and it's what drives Rucker's performance in Rigoletto.
"I think of him as a father," he said. "He's a vile human being who happens to be lucky enough to have this incredibly gorgeous, sweet daughter. She is the only person who keeps him sane, keeps him in check, and he is so afraid of losing her."
Rucker, born and raised in Chicago, has a stepdaughter and stepson with his wife, Sadie. He has sung Rigoletto often, including his debut with New York City Opera in 1988-89. He has performed frequently with Anton Coppola, conductor of Opera Tampa, but this will be their first Rigoletto together.
"He's the quintessential Verdi baritone," Coppola said. "He did absolutely the best Macbeth I've ever had, and there have been some important ones. But Mark, he surpassed them all, at Utah Opera several years ago. We always wanted the opportunity to do Rigoletto, and I think it's going to be a very rewarding experience for all of us."
Rucker venerates Coppola, the elder statesman of American opera conductors. "He's one of those rare individuals who are adept with both the singer and the orchestra," Rucker said. "We've got some top-notch people in this Rigoletto, and it's truly because the maestro is here. People are just so attracted to him and willing to go anywhere to work with him."
Raul Melo, who was in the premiere of Coppola's Sacco and Vanzetti last season, is the Duke. Adria Firestone is Maddalena. Stefan Szkajarowski is Sparafucile.
Because Rigoletto is such a heavy role, it would be difficult to sing three performances in three days. Rucker will be replaced at Saturday's performance by Lisandro Guinis, an Argentinian baritone. There will be two Gildas: Jan Grissom, the soprano who has the role Friday and Sunday with Rucker; and Lisa Layman, who sings it Saturday.
"From a musical point of view, one thing I will instruct the orchestra is to understand that on Saturday there will be two different artists and therefore to be on the alert for maybe a subtle change here or there, a note held a little longer, perhaps, or not so long," Coppola said.
With its lurid melodrama, Rigoletto is an opera that lends itself to creative updating. In Jonathan Miller's famous "Mafia" production, the Duke was a mobster and Rigoletto was his bartender.
In January, Rucker sang the role in a San Diego Opera production, conceived by filmmaker Bruce Beresford (Driving Miss Daisy), which transplanted the opera from 16th century Italy to present-day Hollywood. The Duke was a movie mogul; Rigoletto, an agent.
"The concept worked," Rucker said. "The relationships between the characters stayed the same. It was very well received."
Under director Christopher Mattaliano, the Opera Tampa production will take a traditional approach. Coppola will conduct the Florida Orchestra in the pit.
"What often happens with Rigoletto is it just becomes a barking contest, with the emphasis on how loud you can sing it, how long you can sustain notes," Coppola said. "But my feeling about the opera is that there are other shadings and colors to it, and that's what I try to imbue the artists with."
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PREVIEW: Verdi's Rigoletto, staged by Opera Tampa, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. Tickets: $19.50-$56.50. (813) 229-7827 or toll-free 1-800-955-1045.
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