Review | ‘La bohème’

This summer, the Music Academy brings Puccini’s popular opera La bohème into the 21st century. Rather than starving artists in 1830s Paris, these bohemians are burning masterpieces to keep warm in the winter of 2011 Brooklyn. Directed by Mo Zhou, and featuring principal opera conductor Daniela Candillari, the Music Academy Festival Orchestra, young performers from Sing! as the Act II children’s chorus, and Leher Vocal Institute Studio artists, La bohème is the bleak yet passionate story of artists Rodolfo (Luke Norvell), Mimi (Angela Lamar), Marcello (Navasard Hakobyan), and Musetta (Kylie Kreucher) — all struggling to find meaning in their hand-to-mouth existence.

Powerful melodies and pitch-perfect harmonies resonated through The Granada Theatre against the backdrop of New York City in the dead of winter. From the dreary desolation of the artist’s loft to the cold emptiness of the city streets, this production of La bohème exists in a dark austerity that sets the mood for inevitable tragedy. In contrast, the colorful, raucous atmosphere of the café in Act II shows the brash, hopeful side of bohemian life to which the artists cling.

La bohème is a story of friendship, tenderness, and strife on the fringes of society. This piece is no stranger to updates (remember RENT?), and this production’s modern-day Brooklyn artist concept shows that despite almost 200 years of social progress, the idea of people — young, broke, passionate, and creative — seeking fame and fortune in the big city remains relatable. While the Music Academy’s version takes place around 2011, the lack of technology (there’s not a screen to be found!) provides a quality of romantic anachronism that further transports the audience to the heightened emotional performativity of the operatic universe. With charismatic performers carrying this classic story, the Music Academy’s production of La bohème is full-bodied and polished.