Puzzling 'Europeras' wins over younger audience at Detroit Opera

Detroit Opera continues to push and shove at the boundaries of what the art form can achieve with its new production of John Cage’s “Europeras 3 & 4,” which bowed Friday night at Detroit’s historic Gem Theatre.

In the first act of a wildly careening structure that must be seen to be believed, director Yuval Sharon places his singers and a trio of dancers on a tightly gridded stage where they each sing different arias, from different European operas, simultaneously. Doesn’t make sense? Hang on.

There are also random props of varying sizes moved on and offstage, and two pianists play, simultaneously, snippets of completely different pieces from the ones the performers are singing. Can’t imagine it? Wait.

At the same time, 12 record players play classic opera recordings. While the singers are each singing different songs. While the dancers dance. While the pianists play.

Still with me?

Oh — and there’s no plot, no characters, no arc, nothing to latch onto as the dozens of sounds swirl madly in the air.

Welcome to “Europeras.” Don’t try to make sense of it. Just let the sounds wash over you.

Sopranos Jennifer Cresswell, Kisma Jordan and Melanie Spector do much heavy lifting in the first portion, along with baritones Robert Wesley Mason and Rolfe Dauz, and the meaty tenor of River Guard.

That first segment, “Europera 3,” runs an admittedly overwhelming 70 minutes. (Imagine hearing dozens of radios playing different stations at once.) A giant countdown clock serves as the production’s backdrop; it is unclear whether this is intended as a helpmate or a threat — could be either, depending on how you receive the production. Think about it in similar context to abstract art or free jazz: The entire project is yours to interpret.

The 30-minute second act (“Europera 4”) is less intense and more intimate, sung by only two performers accompanied by one piano. The act is bolstered by the powerhouse vocals of Susan Graham and Davóne Tines, the latter who thundered in the lead role in “X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X” two years ago. Their voices flowed beautifully in the still-disconnected setting, with the notable exception of a period where several minutes tick by in dead silence.

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It's hard to know what to make of such seeming chaos, and every individual seemed to receive it differently; a number of attendees were seen leaving during the first act, and still more did not return after intermission. Overheard reactions after the curtain fell ranged from “That is really cool” to “I heard new harmonies I’d never heard before” to “This is BS!”

Perhaps most notable of all, however, was the overwhelming amount of young people in the audience — in their 20s and 30s — and how enthusiastic they were about what was presented onstage. Many of them were seeing opera for the first time. Many leaped to their feet at the end of both acts, cheered, yelled passionately.

And therein lies the magic of Detroit Opera. In its fearlessness to present bold and sometimes even radical productions that challenge the way opera is seen in the metro Detroit community and around the world, the institution has once again proven that there’s more than one way to enjoy the art form. And within that, Sharon has once again reached an entirely new audience.

“Europeras 3 & 4” runs two more times this weekend: Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

Contact Free Press arts and culture reporter Duante Beddingfield at dbeddingfield@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Opera's puzzling 'Europeras' wins over younger audience