Corpus Evita at West Bay Opera is a Compelling Performance that No One Should Miss

February 19, 2024 Jeryl Moy

Attending the performance of “Corpus Evita” on February 18th at West Bay Opera was a surreal experience I am quite sure none of us in the audience will be lucky enough to repeat. The three creative geniuses responsible for the opera’s existence were in the theatre with us. The Conductor and Stage Director was none other than Jose Luis Moscovich, the librettist of this opera. Carlos Franzetti, the opera’s composer, was in the audience, as was Lorenz Russo, who originated the concept for the opera. It was an honor to share the experience with these men whose passion for the story was obvious from the very first scene.

Preceding my review, I am inserting the following essay written by Jose Luis Moscovich that explains why this opera needed to be written. It is also why it needs to be performed more often in more cities around the world. He is the only one who can speak with authority about this production. My attempt to describe the passion and purpose of the opera would be inadequate, so here in total I have inserted his essay:

“ABOUT CORPUS EVITA

 A cold Monday morning in March 1976, I was leaving my grandma’s old house in Rosario, Argentina, where we lived, to go to school. I was 16 and had just started 12th grade. I walked down the veranda, opened the door and locked it behind me. As I reached the tall Victorian iron gate, two machine guns, pointing at me appeared out of nowhere. An officer behind the soldiers ordered me to unlock the gate. I did, and they brought me back into the house. The officer asked me if I owned a bicycle. Yes, I said. And what color was it? Black. And was I planning to paint it? No. It was brand new.

Then he told me that Victor, my best friend, had been picked up at the corner of the school holding a can of red spray paint. He was 17. Barely a week after the military coup that ousted President Isabel Perón, political graffiti was a serious crime. Victor had told them that he was coming to my house to help me paint my bicycle.

Somehow, it occurred to me to say to them that my dad was an army doctor. It was partially true. More than twenty years earlier, during Peron’s first presidency, he had been called to the reserves for two years and had been given the rank of army lieutenant. The tone of the conversation changed after I mentioned this. It may also have saved my life. They usually arrested anyone they found in a suspect’s personal address book.

After searching the house in vain for subversive leaflets, they took me back to the sidewalk. They wanted me to identify my friend. About 100 feet down the street there was an olive-color Ford Falcon with no license plates. And there, framed perfectly by the rear windshield, was Victor’s bespectacled face, a mane of curly hair, looking at me with a mixture of bewilderment and terror.

I’ve seen that face and those eyes in my dreams many times since. I still do, once in a while. It wasn’t until 30 years later that I finally found out what happened to him. He told me. He was one of the lucky ones. He was jailed for several years. He and his family had to leave the country upon his release. Victor was a second-generation Argentine-born citizen. But he was Jewish. So, his Argentine passport was taken away. They were able to cross over to Uruguay, where the Israeli embassy gave Victor a passport and got them on a fight to TelAviv.

Eventually, they ended up in Barcelona, where they have been for four decades. Victor found me online and sent me an email asking if I would be willing to talk to him. He was afraid I hated him for what happened. I was eager to see him. He flew to San Francisco from Barcelona with his wife and teenage son, and we spent a week together. It was very healing. We rekindled our friendship.

Over the better part of a decade, as Argentina descended into the unspeakable darkness that followed the coup, the scene with the Ford Falcon would repeat itself endlessly. The son in law of Valeria, my first chamber music pianist at the conservatory, was also picked up. He never came back. Many people’s lives were touched directly by the violence.

Among the mostly younger detainees were pregnant women. They were kept alive in captivity until they gave birth. Then their babies were given to childless military couples. The mothers were flown over the Río de la Plata and dropped to their deaths. But first, while still alive, they would get their bellies sliced open, so their bodies would not float. Democracy was restored in December 1983.

Four decades later, DNA testing opened up the next chapter in the story, as the stolen babies started to discover the truth about their adoptive parents, thanks to the work of Mothers of Plaza de Mayo, a group of women who would don white headscarves and walk peacefully on the Plaza every week, defying the military and demanding to know the fate of their abducted children.

Juan Domingo Perón was a populist leader who became president of Argentina in 1946. Perón’s second wife, Eva (Evita), who died young in 1952, became a cult figure during his time in office. Since her death, several generations of politicians have declared themselves the successors to Eva Perón and used her image to get themselves ahead. 

Eva’s myth and the electorate’s ignorance have kept the country stuck in a loop. People keep returning to the myth and they keep voting for it. And politicians keep handing out benefits that the country’s economy can ill afford, in a never-ending downward spiral. Perón was ousted in a military coup in 1955 and went into exile in Spain.

He returned to Argentina in 1973 and was voted into office again, this time with his third wife, Isabel, as vice-president. Perón was a right-wing populist. The movement that brought him back to power was a coalition of left and right-wing people. Once in office, Perón leaned to the right and the mostly younger leftists ended up out of favor. 

Eventually, a left-wing guerrilla movement sprung up. When he died in office, in 1974, Isabel had to deal with a divided society and a guerrilla. She relied on the advice of a Rasputin-like character, José López Rega, who had been Perón’s private secretary during his long exile in Madrid. He had a keen interest in the occult and was known as “el brujo” (the sorcerer.) Because of the big age difference between Perón and Isabel, López Rega was also rumored to be Isabel’s lover. Inexperienced, unprepared for the pressures of the office, and lacking Evita’s charisma, Isabel foundered. There was hyperinflation. López Rega was instrumental in the creation of the Argentine Anticommunist Alliance, a right-wing death squad that abducted and killed leftist leaders. Under López Rega’s influence, Isabel signed a decree enabling the army to annihilate the guerrilla. Soon thereafter, the armed forces went out of control and toppled her administration. She was ousted in March 1976.

The question of Isabel’s responsibility for the deaths that occurred during her time in office was never settled. Spain refused to extradite her so she could be tried in Argentina. She just turned 93 and continues to live in luxury in Madrid. Populist leaders are seldom held to account. Even worse: sooner or later, populist leaders turn into dictators. There are many examples: Marcos in the Philippines, Erdogan in Turkey, Orban in Hungary, Putin in Russia. Should Isabel not be held responsible for her part in enabling the tragedy that followed her ouster? Are ignorance or incompetence valid excuses for a politician to avoid responsibility for their own actions while in office? What if those actions result in the death of people? Isabel will likely die in luxury in Madrid, never having confronted these questions.

When Larry Russo approached me in 1999 to ask me to write the libretto for Corpus Evita I declined at first. But over the next several weeks, as Larry continued to insist, I realized that this would be a good opportunity to explore these issues. What would it be like to see the true nature of Isabel’s relationship with López Rega? Was she really weak, or was she set up to fail in a world dominated by men? Could she find the strength to confront her own sins and own up to them? That would be cathartic for a society that’s still divided about what happened back then. We may never see this in real life, but we can imagine it through the magic of opera. And so, writing Corpus Evita ended up being a personal exorcism for me, and I believe for Carlos as well. 

 José Luis Moscovich”

What resulted is an emotional opera sung in English comprised of 7 scenes divided into 2 acts. The essay above expresses the tale depicted in this production. It follows Isabel Peron’s rise and fall from power in Argentina and the effect she had on the people there. Just as critical to this story is the myth of Eva Peron, the role her corpse played in the events of the day, and Isabel’s desire to be strong and loved like Evita.

I was so engaged by the story unfolding in the opera’s 7 scenes that I missed some of the details about the performances of the artists on stage. They were brilliant I know, because at times their vocals gave me chills and at times I was on the edge of my seat to see clearly just what was transpiring between the various characters on stage. The characters being portrayed are not fictional creations. These performers had to make us believe they were the people they were portraying, and they did.  West Bay Opera always casts first class talent in the opera community. This was no exception. There were just six main performers, all seasoned renowned opera singers whose vocals were well suited for their roles.

Jessica Sandidge, soprano, was captivating as Eva Peron. Her credits are numerous and span the country, which is no surprise. Her strong vocals and amazing range were perfect for this strong character in the story. Sandidge made you believe that she was the embodiment of Eva Peron. Sara LeMesh, soprano, did the same as Isabel Peron. While her vocals were strong, she was able to show a vulnerability critical to the role.  She was a tragic figure from beginning to end, trying desperately to be like Eva Peron and unable to fulfill that role in the eyes of the people. LeMesh portrayed that dichotomy perfectly. The titular role of “Corpus Evita” was sung by mezzo-soprano Laure de Marcellus. Her credits span the globe, and we are the beneficiaries of that experience she brings to the West Bay Opera.

Patrick Bessenbacher, tenor, had the challenging role of Ministro, the advisor to Isabel who controlled her throughout her presidency. He was a believable power-hungry government official. His vocal range was needed in this role, as was his strong voice. Anders Froehlich, baritone, portrayed the doctor whose role was to keep Eva Peron’s corpse viable to be adored by the public. He used his voice well to show the struggle he was going through. Of course, the role of Juan Peron was made for a bass, and Casey Germain’s voice let you know who was in chargeI wish I could mention the chorus members all by name here. They played a very big role in this production. Both singing and acting skills were needed by these chorus members. They were on stage for a good part of the performance, as they had three major roles: Peronist sympathizers, 1970’s mourners, and 1990’s souls of the disappeared. The casting for these roles was spot on.

Productions such as this showcase the talent of the performers, as they should. I do have to mention the amazing sets behind the performers and the costumes/hairdos that were perfect for the period depicted and the position in society held by each performer. When these aspects of a show are perfect, they aren’t noticed as much as they should be, but when they aren’t perfect, they detract from the entire performance. The sets and costumes here were just right. Though the opera is sung in English, the subtitles on the screens were helpful as well. These factors, and the beautiful music of the accompanying orchestra, made for a seamless production that allowed us in the audience to focus on the story being told.     

A compelling story, superb talent, and beautifully designed sets combined to make this production of “Corpus Evita” one of the most memorable performances I have ever and most likely will ever be lucky enough to experience.

The opera is only being performed at West Bay Opera through February 25th. Shows are held at the Lucie Stern Community Center in Palo Alto.  It would be great if they could extend the run so that more of us in the Bay Area and beyond could see this fabulous performance. For more information about this show, how to get tickets, and other programs West Bay Opera has to offer, see their Website

https://splashmags.com/index.php/2024/02/corpus-evita-at-west-bay-opera-is-a-compelling-performance-no-one-should-miss/#gsc.tab=0

Review: ‘Corpus Evita’ explores cults of personality

West Bay Opera stages contemporary piece that captures dark era in a country’s politics

by Michael J. Vaughn

February 22, 2024 4:41 pmUpdated February 29, 2024 11:50 am

It’s fitting that “Corpus Evita” begins with that legendary image of Evita, the president’s dying wife in the balcony, raising her arms in that idiosyncratic way while saying farewell to her people. Created by composer Carlos Franzetti, with a libretto by West Bay Opera general director Jose Luis Moscovich, the opera is largely concerned with image, and if you whispered the name “Evita” to the average American, this is exactly the image that would come to mind.

The bulk of the opera’s action begins much later, in 1973, as Juan Perón returns from a 17-year exile in Spain to run for re-election. Evita’s corpse, spirited away by the military in 1955, is returned and put on display to a mourning, adoring public. Juan wins the election, tries to sell his third wife and vice president Isabel as a new version of Evita, and dies a year later.

But “Corpus Evita,” which debuted in San Francisco in 2000, is less a standard narrative than an exploration of the Argentine soul, with an emphasis on mythology and cults of personality. The real meat of the conflict arises as Isabel, not really prepared for governance, grapples with her duties under the heavy-handed guidance of her husband’s right-hand man, José López Rega, referred to in the opera simply as Ministro. Ministro gives a lot of lip service to “the cause,” ostensibly the policies created from Juan Perón’s right-wing populism, but he seems to be much more interested in consolidating and expanding his power. He coerces Isabel into unleashing the military on a growing uprising of communists, which results in 30,000 deaths. The military also engages in a ruthless program of slaughtering young couples and giving their babies to couples with more Perónist views.

Isabel Perón (Sara LeMesh, center) grapples with the fallout of ruthless policies but is also haunted by the ghosts of the regime who put them in place: that of her late husband, Juan Perón (Casey Germain, right), and his right-hand man, Ministro (Patrick Bessenbacher, left) in “Corpus Evita.” Courtesy West Bay Opera.

The opera is a wild trip filled with magical realist devices. Isabel, who in reality is 93 and still exiled in Spain, is brought home to Argentina to answer for her sins. Ministro then uses his occult powers to bring in the younger Juan and Evita for a conference, or perhaps it’s more of a trial.

Composer Franzetti, who is well-versed in jazz and tango idioms, created a rhythmically propulsive score, at times moody and haunting, but always prepared to go off in bursts of musical gunfire. Moscovich and his orchestra handle the resultant challenges beautifully, notably percussionist Sohrab Bazargannia and timpanist Neal Goggans.

The vocal style is straightforward and declamatory, making use of modern intervals but always in service to the discourse. Soprano Jessica Sandidge handles the role of Evita with grace and an even, clear tone, even though playing a goddess can be an unrewarding job. Casey Germain’s bass tone is gorgeous, lending a calm presence to Juan that is quite a contrast to his impassioned cohorts.

Tenor Patrick Bessenbacher is an edgy treat as the Rasputinesque Ministro. His spinto tone provides just the right measure of danger, and no one’s really surprised when he resorts to the dark arts.

Though “Corpus Evita” examines real-life politics, it also has magical elements, as Isabel (Sara LeMesh, left) is visited by Ministro’s ghost (Patrick Bessenbacher) and other spirits. Courtesy West Bay Opera.

The bulk of the conflict settles on the shoulders of soprano Sara LeMesh, whose performance of Isabel is a superb example of vocal acting. A particularly powerful scene comes in a trio with Juan and Ministro, both of whom seem relatively untroubled by 30,000 dead people, while Isabel is ripping out her hair at the hell she has unwittingly unleashed.

The stage direction designed by Jose Maria Condemi is balanced and effective, many times resembling the creation of living portraits upon the stage. The torture scene, in which a young couple is killed, their baby wrestled away for “reassignment,” is particularly brutal and chilling. Done with their jobs, the soldiers file offstage, receiving bank notes from Ministro as they leave. Another tableau brings veiled desaparecidos (the disappeared), holding candles and framed pictures of their missing children; they later transform into happy citizens, basking in the glow of Evita’s image.

Franzetti’s chorus parts are beautifully simple, a great contrast to the roiling dramatic scenes, and well handled by chorus master Bruce Olstad’s charges. Peter Crompton’s set design is flexible enough to handle the ever-shifting realities, while his projections are helpful in offering enlightening bits of propaganda and newspaper clippings. A striking departure is the projection used to portray the interior of Isabel’s apartment, which is magically realistic.

In my desire to see things in a fresh way, I make a habit of never reading the program before a performance. In the case of “Corpus Evita,” I would recommend that you read Moscovich’s notes beforehand. It’s best to get a quick refresher on your Argentine politics, and it also gives a striking account of Mosocovich’s childhood in Argentina.

Feb. 24-25, 2 p.m., Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. $43-$115. 650-424-9999, wbopera.org

https://www.almanacnews.com/ae/2024/02/22/review-corpus-evita-explores-cults-of-personality/#:~:text=His%20spinto%20tone%20provides%20just,Patrick%20Bessenbacher)%20and%20other%20spirits.

Review: New opera explores the fraught history of Argentine politics

Joshua Kosman February 19, 2024Updated: February 20, 2024, 10:54 am

Eva Perón, the glamorous, short-lived second wife of Argentine President Juan Perón, remains the dominant icon for that country’s 20th century history. Since her death in 1952, she’s been the subject of veneration and revisionism, and served as the central figure of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s hit musical “Evita.”

But no one has thought to put Perón’s third wife, Isabel, at the center of a theatrical work, until now. “Corpus Evita,” a 2000 opera by composer Carlos Franzetti and librettist José Luis Moscovich that serves as the season’s final production at West Bay Opera in Palo Alto, explores the dark, morally ambiguous tale of Isabel Perón’s brief presidency in the mid-1970s. It turns out to be fertile, if slippery, ground.

The two-act opera doesn’t always hit its marks. The dramaturgy is often awkward, with scenes fading out rather than landing with a crisp impact. Franzetti, the composer of many film scores and the winner of five Latin Grammys, writes with inventive flair for the orchestra and less persuasively for the voice.

Yet time and again, the matinee performance on Sunday, Feb. 18, at the Lucie Stern Theatre (the second in a four-performance run through Sunday, Feb. 25) left the audience captivated by the political and emotional ferment depicted onstage by the two Argentine-born artists.

Isabel Perón, in Moscovich’s telling, was set up to fail. She came to politics as a naive young woman, selected by her husband — 35 years her senior — to try to recreate the political and populist magic that her predecessor had forged with miraculous ease. It was a task for which she was singularly ill-equipped.

Isabel became both vice president and first lady just in time for her husband to die in office, making her the nation’s first female president and leaving the country at the mercy of the military leaders who would quickly oust her to usher in a barbarous era of repression and secret government killings.

How complicit was she in what happened? Moscovich, who is West Bay Opera’s longtime general director, slices the question rather finely.

Isabel Perón, still alive at 93 and living in luxurious exile in Spain, is given a poignant if not always persuasive opportunity to grieve the 30,000 victims of the generals’ reign of terror. At the same time, “Corpus Evita” is unflinching in its depiction of the regime’s crimes, which Moscovich witnessed as a youth.

The opera’s emotional heart, though, is the tug-of-war between the long-dead Evita and the constantly overshadowed Isabel. (More than once, a listener is reminded of Hitchcock’s “Rebecca,” a treatment of similar themes.)

Evita doesn’t just overpower Isabel with her popularity and ability to win over the masses. She literally outnumbers her onstage. The opera features two Evitas, the brightly charismatic figure seen in flashback (soprano Jessica Sandidge, in a sharp-edged, vibrant performance) and the reanimated corpse (mezzo-soprano Laure de Marcellus) who serves as a ghostly encapsulation of the Evita cult.

Against those formidable adversaries, Isabel barely stands a chance, not even as embodied with vocal fervor and dramatic power by soprano Sara LeMesh.

Isabel also has to contend with a pair of strong male adversaries posing as allies, her late husband (bass Casey Germain) and the Rasputin-like figure identified here only as “el Ministro” (tenor Patrick Bessenbacher, singing with fiery brilliance).

In the opera’s most subtle and intricately wrought scene, the two men trade charges and commiseration over Isabel’s head, while she struggles to make her own position felt.

Franzetti’s score, which Moscovich conducted, is a striking melange of illustrative directness and surprising stylistic choices.

The wordless entr’acte depicting the torture and murder of Argentine dissidents is made all the more haunting by the churning, forceful music that accompanies it. Sudden bursts of waltz music or neo-Elizabethan strains prove to be a head-scratcher.

The production, also directed by Moscovich, makes canny use of visual projections and close-packed staging.

“Corpus Evita” concludes with a choral ode to the title character, as the Argentine population goes full steam into the creation of a cult around this venerated leader, and Isabel is promptly forgotten. Once again, the golden figure of the distant past — dimly recalled, imperfectly understood — obliterates the reality of the all-too-flawed present.

Reach Joshua Kosman: jkosman@sfchronicle.com

More Information

“Corpus Evita”: West Bay Opera. 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, Feb. 24-25. $40-$112. Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. 650-424-9999. www.wbopera.org

https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/classical/corpus-evita-west-bay-opera-18663989

Corpus Evita

West Bay Opera Performs 2005 Grammy Nominee

By: Victor Cordell - Feb 17, 2024

The name Perón is synonymous with modern politics in Argentina.  Juan Perón was a dominant post-WW2 populist president.  His second wife Evita became a mystical talisman for the country’s working class seeking a better way of life, but she died tragically in 1952 at age 33.

Perón was overthrown in 1955, but returning from exile, his third wife, Isabel, became his running mate in 1973 and succeeded him upon his death.   She sought to resurrect the magnetic aura of Evita as her own, only to be repudiated and overthrown by a military coup in 1976.

In fashioning “Corpus Evita,” composer Carlos Franzetti and librettist José Luis Moscovich explore the charisma of Juan and Evita, in contrast with Isabel’s doomed ascent and rejection, replete with the apparitions of her predecessors.  The seldom produced but remarkable musical drama was nominated for a Grammy in 2005.

West Bay Opera offers a musically and visually powerful rendering of this piece which holds special resonance for its creators.  Both composer and librettist grew up in Argentina in the Perón era; were teenagers during Isabel’s regime; and ultimately crafted this operatic indictment of Perónism that many in their home country would find objectionable.  

The librettist is West Bay’s General Director, its artistic visionary, and the conductor of the orchestra.

The vivid look of the opera from Peter Crompton’s set and projection design appears from the start, with a classic public-appearances balcony surrounded by expressive and detailed projections that give depth to the stage.

At the opening, Evita bids farewell to her admirers from the balcony as she is dying from cancer.  In her soliloquy, soprano Jessica Sandidge cuts a striking and authentic figure as she powers through the high passages with grace and authority.

The scene then shifts to 1974.  The central focus throughout the narrative is on the unprepared and hapless Isabel who considers herself well-intended but is unable to offer the hope and magnetism of Evita.   Feeling ineffectual and trapped, she meekly authorizes actions that result in the murders of thousands of innocent people.  Soprano Sara LeMesh adeptly captures Isabel’s inner conflict and sings her anguish with strident conviction without losing her eloquent vibrato.

A composite figure, Ministro, is the male lead, performed by tenor Patrick Bessenbacher.  He poses an ominous figure as the behind-the-scenes manipulator who hopes to resurrect “the flame of Evita” through Isabel.  He scorches his rage through his mid and upper range, but is asked to dig lower at times, and gets lost beneath the orchestra.

The musical idiom of the piece is neoromantic, without memorable melodies but continuously attractive.  Lush strings-forward sound dominates, with percussion often finishing, especially in heated sequences.  Notable choral contributions also include rhythmic, percussive effects, especially through repetition like “Evita. Evita. Evita” or “Isabel. Isabel. Isabel.”

Ensemble pieces also appeal.  Evita and Juan, sung by bass Casey Germain, engage in a self-indulgent duet at a grand ball, and the contrast of voices works particularly well.  Conversely, Isabel and Ministro vocally shout blame at each other with controlled fury in their electric exchange.  In a revelatory trio, Isabel, Juan, and Ministro share their different perspectives and shared regrets from Isabel’s failed regime.

“Corpus Evita” deals intelligently with important themes.  And though the conceit of magical realism allows for great leeway, because this opera deals with critical historical issues, accuracy is important.

Greater clarity would be welcomed in the plot line.  Simply including dates (which are in the program) in the supertitles would help orient the patron, as the timeline jumps by decades and is not chronological.  And though the device of Evita as an apparition is clever and understandable, a scene that includes Isabel with both Evita and Corpus Evita is not clear.

The events depicted in the opera are highly dramatic and engaging.  However, the drama is disrupted by emptiness during slow scene changes.  If the set change can’t be hastened, one solution is to move transitional action in front of the curtain while props are being moved.  Another is to add bridge orchestration for the changes.

Nonetheless, this opera offers a scintillating and worthy experience with beautiful music, an important storyline, and an opulent production.  Thematically, it excoriates Perónism as a symbol of populism, decrying the cult of personality and myths that invariably lead to tyranny.

Regrettably, many people fall captive to auras and neglect substance.  We face the same chilling challenge in this country today.

“Corpus Evita” with music by Carlos Franzetti and lyrics by José Luis Moscovich is produced by West Bay Opera and plays at Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, CA through February 25, 2024.

https://www.berkshirefinearts.com/02-17-2024_corpus-evita.htm