The Brevard Music Center’s third and final opera production for the 2024 Summer Festival, Weill’s “The Threepenny Opera,” emphasized the company’s versatility and devotion to training top-notch young artists.

A myriad of musical skill, dedication, and artistry was displayed by the members of the Janiec Opera Company in the three mainstage operas the team produced over the last month. While I cannot speak to the company’s first Festival production, as I did not attend, it is worth mentioning that staging Dove’s “Flight,” Puccini’s “La bohème,” and “The Threepenny Opera,” three contrasting operas back-to-back, is quite the task. However, the Janiec Opera Company’s ambition resulted in an enjoyable and prosperous season.

A Thoughtful Production

Dean Anthony’s stage direction proves to be methodical and enlightening. Anthony successfully incorporates educational components that benefit not only the performers and stage crew in developing their stagecraft, but invites the audience to see behind the scenes as the cast and crew seamlessly transition scenes. There was a balance between necessity and pageantry that meshed well with the scaffolding design by scenic designer Danielle Brooks.

Solid Performers

Tenor Brandon Flores opened the show with a strong interpretation of “The Ballad of Mack the Knife.” Flores combined his velvety operatic timbre with elements from the widespread pop version of the piece with ease. Baritone Andrew Herbert and mezzo-soprano Jacqueline Conlon embodied the roles of Mr. and Mrs. Peachum, respectively, with the right amount of wretchedness and humor. Their duet, “Instead-of-Song,” was thoroughly entertaining. Both Herbert and Conlon sang with rich classical tone that meshed together well.

Brevard native, Claire Griffin lit up the stage with her dreamy soprano. Griffin showed off her resonant upper register in contrast with pointed low notes in Polly’s “Ballad of Dependency” and like melodies. Baritone Jonathan Motes exuded comfort in the role of Macheath, as he presented the character with a fitting smugness. His tone was both soulful and gentle, and overall pleasing to listen to. Cayenne Teeter’s sultry mezzo-soprano and nonchalance was magnetic. Teeter’s portrayal of Jenny Diver was by far one of the best performances in “The Threepenny Opera.”

Due to the nature of summer programs, performers were cast in everything from leads to ensemble to supernumerary roles. Sopranos Alexandra Kzeski and Laura Looper, mezzo-sopranos Isabell Kosempa and Zoë Kales, as well as baritone Jason Edelstein excelled in even the smallest of roles as their impeccable stage presence could not be subdued.

One inconsistency heard that cannot be overlooked is the assortment of accents. There appeared to be groups of performers with matching Cockney accents, while others sounded more Transatlantic, and some performers sounded as if they were not using an accent at all.

Everyone on stage showed signs of improvement, as there was more ease on stage in general. The acting and choreography appeared to be more natural and cleaner. Another noticeable difference was that no one was over singing. The stylistic difference between Puccini and Weill’s writing is definitely a contributing factor, but nonetheless, it was a nice change.