Washington Classical Review

J’Nai Bridges and Ryan McKinny in Washington National Opera’s production of Robert Ward’s The Crucible. Photo; Scott Suchman

Washington National Opera is celebrating America’s upcoming 250th birthday and its own 70th anniversary by mounting three American works. After presenting Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha, WNO returned to Robert Ward’s The Crucible for the first time since 1999, heard Saturday evening at Lisner Auditorium. 

That venue hosted WNO this month after the company broke away from the Kennedy Center, “that building that shall not be named,” as artistic director Francesca Zambello put it before the curtain, to appreciative applause and cheers.

Zambello goes on to note in her brief program note, The Crucible highlights what she calls “the dangers of fear, ignorance, and intolerance in society,” seemingly linking the opera’s witch-hunting theme to the Trump administration (although she did not name the president directly). 

Ward won the 1962 Pulitzer Prize for music with this score, an adaptation of Arthur Miller’s play of the same title from 1953. The story is drawn from historical events during the 1692 Salem Witch Trials, but with some alterations. Several girls falsely accuse townspeople of witchcraft, leading to widespread torture and execution. The lies are led by Abigail Williams, who is motivated by jealousy of Elizabeth Proctor, wife of the man with whom she had an affair. Miller’s narration scenes, drawing a parallel with the Red Scare led by Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s, are entirely omitted in the opera.

J’Nai Bridges, who made her WNO debut in Samson et Dalila right before the Covid pandemic, gave a sensitive rendition of Elizabeth Proctor. The American mezzo-soprano’s voice suited the warm qualities of the role, as the dutiful wife stood by her husband, even refusing to admit that he was unfaithful to her.

Baritone Ryan McKinny overpowered most of the rest of the cast as John Proctor, his steely sound giving apt caustic bite to the character’s overwhelming anger. All of the opera’s characters, including the Proctors, combine sympathetic and repugnant qualities, something that this excellent cast brought out with subtlety.

Chauncey Packer, the vivid Sportin’ Life in last season’s Porgy and Bess, brought some of the same character-tenor intensity to Judge Danforth, who presides over the trial scenes in Acts III and IV. Mezzo-soprano Ronnita Miller made a powerful WNO debut as Tituba, the African or possibly indigenous woman enslaved by Rev. Parris and the first person accused of witchcraft. Her electric voice, molten in the lower register, gave exceptional pathos to her confession aria in Act I and the soulful “De Devil say he’s comin” in the Act IV prison scene.

Photo: Scott Suchman

Most of the rest of the cast consisted of current or former Cafritz Young Artists, who formed a strong and cohesive ensemble, even more crucial since the production omitted the chorus parts. Soprano Lauren Carroll and tenor Nicholas Huff, who both gave noteworthy main stage performances in last fall’s Aida, proved exceptional here as well. Carroll’s incisive top range powered the jealous outrages of Abigail Williams, who leads the group of accusing girls. As Giles Corey, Huff’s heroic tone reinforced the virtue of one of the only townspeople who refused to confess to the crimes charged against him.

Other standouts included mezzo-soprano Michelle Mariposa as Rebecca Nurse, the other townsperson who stands up to the girls’ lies and insinuation. Soprano Tiffany Choe and baritone Chandler Benn, as Ann and Thomas Putnam, used their vocal presence to incarnate the opportunism of Salem’s wealthiest citizens. Joining forces with Carroll as the accusing girls in the manic court scene was an outstanding group of women: Kresley Figueroa (Mary Warren), Anneliese Klenetsky (Ruth Putnam), Veronica Siebert (Betty Parris), and Alexandra Christoforakis (Susanna Walcott).

Robert Spano, who made his debut as music director in last fall’s Marriage of Figaro, made excellent use of his experience with contemporary music. His precise gestures kept all forces unified, even given Ward’s preference for complex mixed meters. The achievement was especially remarkable since Lisner’s small pit meant the brass and percussion had to be piped in from a separate room. (Coordinated by camera, this awkward solution would have been necessary in the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater as well.)

Zambello’s production, originally created for the Glimmerglass Festival, is appropriately austere. A backdrop and side panels evoked simple wood clapboards (set design by Neil Patel), with Jessica Jahn’s costumes in somber black and mostly dim colors for the women. Sound (designed by Mark Rivet) added the ambience of evening in the outdoor scenes, with barren tree branches hanging above representing the forest.

The Crucible runs through March 29 at Lisner Auditorium. washnatopera.org