‘La Bohème’ is a love story for Opera Maine, Portland
Symphony Orchestra
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/2025/01/22/la-boheme-is-a-love-story-for-opera-maine-portland-symphony-orchestra January 22, 2025
Vanessa Isiguen (Mimì, a seamstress) and Christopher Oglesby (Rodolfo, a poet) rehearse Act 3 of “La Boheme” at Merrill Auditorium on Tuesday evening in Portland. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald
For the first time ever, the Portland Symphony Orchestra and Opera Maine will join forces on stage. On Friday and Sunday, they will present performances of “La Bohème,” the classic opera by Giacomo Puccini about poor artists in Paris in the 1830s. It is a tale of love and heartbreak, but the leaders of the symphony and the opera hope their own union is only a joyful one.
“It’s more than a romance,” said Eckart Preu, music director of the Portland Symphony Orchestra. “It’s a marriage.”
At least, it’s a proposal. The Portland Symphony Orchestra decided to mark its 100th anniversary by partnering with local arts organizations. The season includes performances with the ChoralArt Masterworks chorus, Portland Stage and Portland Ballet. Preu said he wants those relationships to set the tone for the future
“My vision for an orchestra in the community is that ideally, it should be a catalyst for the entire arts community,” Preu said.
Opera Maine is also celebrating a big milestone with its 30th season. Artistic director Dona Vaughn said she was thrilled when the orchestra reached out to propose the collaboration. Opera Maine always performs with live music, and members of the Portland Symphony Orchestra moonlight there. But “La Bohème” will mark the first time they will officially perform with the full orchestra.
“Eckart and I thought very seriously about what we could present together that we both felt very deeply about,” she said. “Eckart loves opera, and he is very passionate about opera and all of his music, and very passionate about singers. And certainly, when you look for singers, Opera Maine is the place to come.”
The partnership comes with logistical challenges. Normally, Opera Maine performs with 40 or so musicians in the pit below the stage. This time, the Portland Symphony Orchestra will bring more than 60 musicians, who will sit on the stage itself. The principal singers will be in
front of the orchestra, so they will not be able to see Preu except on a small video screen as he directs the performance. There will be no formal set and minimal props.
“The singers will have to listen, and the orchestra will have to listen, too,” Vaughn said. “I think it’s very challenging for the conductor to be put literally between the orchestra and the singers on stage.”
The PSO and Opera Maine are collaborating for the first time to present a joint staging of “La Boheme” on Jan. 23 and 24. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald
Matt Consul plays viola in the Portland Symphony Orchestra, and this show will be his third with Opera Maine. He said the material requires a different kind of focus and endurance than a more traditional concert.
“There tends to be so much more fluidity and flexibility in the music,” said Consul, 36, who lives in North Yarmouth. “You have sometimes very extended sections where what’s happening on stage with the singers, it’s improvisatory in the delivery. Rhythmically, it’s the orchestra’s and the director’s responsibility to be right there to respond.”
He did not have a deep knowledge of opera before he started working on their productions. “La Bohème” was not a familiar story for Consul — except that his older sister was obsessed with “Rent,” the musical loosely based on Puccini’s opera, when they were younger. He said he is excited for the performances and hopes for more partnerships in the future.
“I think we have the potential to make each other better, and that’s always the best type of collaboration,” he said.
The opera will be sung in Italian with English subtitles projected above the stage. There might be tears, Preu warned. He and Vaughn selected this opera because it was a mutual favorite, and Preu said the final scenes always fill him with emotion.
Music Director Eckart Preu, center, during a rehearsal of “La Boheme” at Merrill Auditorium on Tuesday night. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald
“It is actually my wish that people will cry,” he said. “I would love to have a sobbing audience at the end of this. I would love to have Kleenex at the end, and everybody wipes it away and smiles.”
But both said they see a future together. And fans seem to be rooting for them. As of Tuesday, one performance only had limited tickets left, and the other was sold out.
“For a partnership to develop — a true partnership — it needs to be a long-term commitment,” Preu said. “It’s not a one-night stand. Really you want to commit to a long relationship. It is so important that we recognize each other’s qualities, and we realize that
together we can put on much bigger shows than we would each on our own.”
IF YOU GO
WHAT: “La Bohème,” presented by the Portland Symphony Orchestra and Opera Maine
WHERE: Merrill Auditorium, 20 Myrtle St., Portland
WHEN: Jan. 24 at 7 p.m. and Jan. 26 at 2:30 p.m.
HOW MUCH: Tickets range from $15 to $95. Only limited seats remained for the Jan. 24
performance as of Tuesday. The Jan. 26 show is sold out.
INFO: For more information, visit porttix.com or call the box office at 207-842-0800.
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