Mozart’s ever-popular opera “Cosi fan tutte” (“They All Do It”) retains its fizzy humor no matter what exotic spin producers and directors decide to give it. A case in point is the In Series’ fanciful update, “Cosi fan tutte Goes Hollywood,” which opened Sunday in the troupe’s recently established home base at the Source Theatre.
Reprising last summer’s production, this setting of Mozart’s screwball sitcom time-travels to 1920s Hollywood, renaming and transforming the work’s central quartet of young lovers into aspiring La-La Land starlets and actor wannabes who hail from America’s heartland. The result is a comic confection at an economical price point that will appeal to musical-theatergoers who want all the classical calories but none of the fat.
Under musical direction of Victoria Gau, this hardworking Hollywood “Cosi” depends on a tiny but tight pit ensemble and six accomplished local singers to deliver the goods. Frequently employing rhymed couplets, Nick Olcutt’s new English libretto updates the frothy original without doing significant damage to its spirit.
“Cosi’s” ditsy plot finds an old roue betting two young men that their girlfriends will cheat on them at their first opportunity. The wager is set in motion when the young men depart on a flimsy pretext. They soon reappear in disguise with each attempting — successfully — to romance the other’s significant other.
In the original, the guys return as dashing Albanian royalty — apparently a great ethnic non sequitur in Mozart’s day. The In Series version brings them back as supercool movie-star dudes with opaque eyeshades and attitude. Mozart’s joke is at the expense of the women, of course, but the men soon realize they’ve been cads themselves, and everything ends on a positive note.
The singing in this production is accomplished, for the most part. It’s not on a par with the Washington Opera, but then again, you don’t have to take out a second mortgage to get in the front door. The soloists are bright, engaging and fun. They also take great care with their English diction, which helps move the evening along at a brisk yet intelligible pace.
As sisters Dorrie and Florrie, mezzo-soprano Grace Gori and soprano Mary Gresock were a delight. Both were able to adjust their rather considerable instruments to the small Source space and were more than a match for Mozart’s challenging arias.
As Florrie’s boyfriend Elmo, baritone Terry Eberhardt was firmly in command of his role, revealing a vigorous and authoritative voice. As his counterpart Randall, tenor Marvin Scott experienced some difficulty articulating his top notes cleanly on opening night, particularly in Mozart’s rapid passage work.
In the smaller roles of Tina and Fonso, soprano Rebecca Ocampo and baritone Bobb Robinson rounded out the cast with panache, adding just the right touch of broad humor and vocal heft to their solo turns and to the opera’s concluding ensembles.
**
WHO: The In Series
WHAT: “Cosi fan tutte Goes Hollywood”
WHERE: The Source Theatre, 1835 14th St. NW
WHEN: Jan. 17 and 31 at 1:30 p.m.; Jan. 19 at 3 p.m.; Jan. 21 and 25 at 7:30 p.m.
TICKETS: $18 to $31
TELEPHONE: 202/518-0152 or visit www.inseries.org
MAXIMUM RATING: FOUR STARS
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