One Night, Three Sopranos
Her pitch accuracy was something to
and a Victor Herbert Piece…
Let the Show Begin!
By Sabrina Ortiz Vázquez
Music, a performance space, a great crowd
and surprisingly good food were characters
of the night. It was in this ambience that
three sopranos performed their renditions of
“If I were on the Stage” from the operetta
Mlle. Modiste by Victor Herbert with lyrics
by Henry Blossom.
On March 4, 2018 at the Kennedy
Center Terrace Theater, sopranos Pretty
Yende, Julia Antonova and Chelsea
Davidson performed the piece and delighted
the public with their voices. The
interpretation of the piece varied from singer
to singer with Julia Antonova wearing hats
and costumes to give more shape to the
character.
One of the things that was most
enjoyable about Antonova’s performance is
the humorous and sensual characteristics in
her acting. She savored every note and every
word she sang and took us on a trip in
exploring every role. Suffice to say, she
convinced me that she could play all three
characters without a doubt. Her acting was
well complemented by her beautiful and
potent voice. Her high notes had the tall
palatal space as well as molar space and
with that formula, her voice resonated
around the theater with a lovely spin. I do
have to say that at some point there were
some slightly mispronunciation of words but
that did not impact the lyrics as much
because she made it up to us by offering lots
of consonants that helped with the phrasing
and the various sentiments this piece has to
offer.
Following Antonova’s performance
was Pretty Yende’s. Contrary to Antonova,
Yende’s performance was of a more serious
nature, dedicated more to the singing than to
the acting per se, but stunning nonetheless.
admire, especially in the polonaise section
of the song which was wonderfully sung
with palatal and molar space. Her
connection was made possible with the
consonants, which she exaggerated to give
weight in meaning to the words she was
singing. This matter, however, does not
erase the fact that there were some sections
that, with consonants and all, the words
were lost in the space; definitely something
to consider if she were to sing the song
again would be to clarify the words in the
section before the waltz. Overall, Yende did
a splendid job interpreting the piece and I
praise her breath support throughout the
song and the beautiful spinning of the high
B’s and C.
Last but not least, let us not forget
the sweet and jolly performance of Chelsea
Davidson that turned into a powerful, not-
so- sweet-anymore interpretation of the
song. The way that she flirted with the
public in the “tra la la’s” section, and the
moving, sensual way she sang the waltz in
the end are some of the sections that stood
out the most, but they were definitely not the
most astounding parts. One thing that was
definitely unexpected was that potent last
note (or should I say, notes) that left the
audience in awe. Very impressive,
exquisitely sung, awe-struck, are the phrases
that come to mind to describe that last
moment in the “kiss me again” section and
there is only one comment to summarize it
all… Magnificent! That breath support and
the connection of that phrase was
mesmerizing and, all in all, the highlight of
the night.
The three sopranos did a splendid job
on their performances, and there is only one
word that the public should yell to these
ladies when they come out and bow to them,
and that word is… Bravo!
https://youtu.be/MxkKrrA4CRM - Julia Antonova
https://youtu.be/F4lgV1ZTzxc - Pretty Yende
https://youtu.be/GEX0sqYGZW0 - Chelsea Davidson