SING LIKE AN EGYPTIAN (2/12/2011)

The timing could not have been more perfect.  As people of Egyptian heritage in the United States celebrate the beginnings of what will hopefully be a transition from a virtual dictatorship to a system where the citizens of Egypt have more of a voice and more power to select their leader, a group of stellar Egyptian musicians (with one Lebanese singer) performed selections from four operas of Mozart translated into Egyptian Arabic in the auditorium of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. 

The master of ceremonies for the concert, bass-baritone Ashraf Sewailam, began the proceedings by noting what a special time this is for his people.  He wore a red scarf, the base color of the Egyptian flag. He then sang the aria "O Isis und Osiris" from Die Zauberflote to honor those who perished during the recent struggle.


Beginning with selections from Le Nozze di Figaro, the Arabic was most noticeable in the recitatives and even here the translation always seemed fluid and convincing.  One notable aspect of the performance was the fact that the character of Susanna was performed by an older singer than the character of the countess, who was also absolutely stunningly beautiful.  The gestures and mannerisms of the characters went a long way to balance the differences in age. Cynthia Samaha-Mekl always projected the Countess as dignified and restrained.  She let her voice alone express her emotions.  On the other hand, Mona Rafla used lots of gestures, physical movement and animated expression to project the smart, youthful character of Susanna. These approaches to characterization might be common with this opera but is of special importance when trying to mask age discrepancies.


Ms. Samaha-Melki showed more physical characterization in the role of Fiordiligi from Cosi Fan Tutte. Her brilliant performance of "Come scoglio" was a show stopper.  Her acting in role of Zerlina in Don Giovanni was even more overt and engaging.  Also, during this segment the baritone Raouf Zaidan, Mr. Sewailam's teacher, expertly played the role of Leperello.  The acting segments between these two actors was one of the highlights of this segment.  He continued his brilliant portrayal as Papageno in Die Zauberflote, which was translated into colloquial Egyptian Arabic.


The four singers concluded the program by singing the Egyptian national anthem.  Throughout, the pianist Mohamed Shams provided a strong and engaging accompaniment.


This was a special event at a special time. The performance took place at the auditorium of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center on February 12.