“Hansel & Gretel” reviewed by Jacob Davis

[rating=5] An opera that’s fun for families? It could happen. The delightfully named composer Engelbert Humperdinck wrote music for his sister Adelheid Wette’s adaptation of Hansel and Gretel in 1893, and it’s been popular in performance ever since. With a familiar story that’s a little scary and morbidly funny as well as a score that is much richer than anyone expected or demanded for this subject matter (Humperdinck was an apprentice to Richard Wagner), the opera is a solid basis for all sorts of fanciful designs and exciting performances. A production originally directed by Richard Jones is now playing at the Lyric Opera graced by multitalented singing actors, many making their Lyric debuts or playing their first major roles on that stage, and conducted by Lyric veteran Sir Andrew Davis.

The first thing that needs to be said about Hansel and Gretel (mezzo Samantha Hankey and soprano Heidi Stober) is that they seem to really be friends. The opera begins with a grand, dramatic overture while we contemplate the painted image of an empty, chipped plate and some utensils that you might not want to put in your mouth anyway, before transitioning to the brother and sister playing games in their very humble house to stave off hunger and boredom. They make up dances, imitate birds, roughhouse, and are generally very noisy and energetic. Their mom (soprano Alexandra LoBianco) comes home expecting to have nothing to eat for dinner but a jug of cream and finds they broke it, and is understandably snappish when she sends them out to forage in the Haunted Wood. She is also understandably astounded when their father (bass-baritone Alfred Walker) reveals that the wood is literally haunted by a child-eating witch, as this has apparently never come up in conversation before.

Hansel and Gretel is a very funny opera. It is also one that straddles the line between the fantastic and the mundane. The heroes’ house is drab and depressing, as are their regular costumes (both designed by John Macfarlane). However, everyone except Mother speaks in rhyming couplets, which are brilliantly translated overhead. Father is a good-natured drunk who attempts and fails to climb in through the window while in a jovial mood, although the family’s poverty gives this an unmistakably unpleasant undercurrent. In the second part of the first act, the play takes a sudden turn toward the darkly imaginative, as the children wander deeper into the Haunted Wood. The strawberries they smear on each other become ominous, but not so much as the spirits of the forest, including a Sandman (soprano Denis Vélez) who, from his mere appearance, nobody would be sorry to see trapped in a fishbowl.
And then things take a turn toward the comedic again. All of the actors are brilliant, but it’s no insult to say that mezzo Jill Grove as the Witch steals the show. One could, perhaps, make much of how she looks very similar to the children’s mother while being an inversion of outer toughness and deep love. But like their father, she also seems to be drunk as a skunk and in high spirits, setting off a fast-paced kitchen slugfest hilariously choreographed by Linda Dobell (Eric Einhorn is the revival director). It seems clear that it was the middle portion of the opera that best supported original director Jones’s grim Wagnerian vision, but the end is uproarious. And in this reviewer’s opinion, Hansel and Gretel are both so obnoxious this act that it doesn’t matter whether they or the Witch win the fight, since their sparring is so enthralling. I felt exhausted and all I did was watch. Since the performance is in German, it might be better for children who are old enough to not mind reading the supertitles, but this Hansel and Gretel does seem sure to entertain kids and adults, as well as giving new performers a chance to shine on the Lyric’s stage.

Hansel and Gretel will continue at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N Upper Wacker Drive, Chicago, thru February 5, with the following showtimes:
February 1 2:00 pm
February 3 7:00 pm
February 5 2:00 pm
Running time is two hours and twenty-five minutes with one intermission.

Performances are in German with English supertitles.
The Lyric offers parking deals with Poetry Garage at 201 W Madison St. if inquired about in advance. Tickets start at $40; to order, visit LyricOpera.org or call 321-827-5600.
To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click “Hansel and Gretel.”