Minnesota Public
Radio's Jennifer Swanson has intimate experience with The Turn of The Screw
- she studied the role of the Governess while participating in the Young Artist
Program at Florida Grand Opera in Miami. A graduate of the University of Illinois
and New England Conservatory, Ms. Swanson works in the broadcast division of MPR
providing support for its music programs. Here, she offers her firsthand recollections
of the opera.
Speak the RHYTHM . . . Speak the
RHYTHM. How often have I heard this advice from conductors, coaches, and
teachers? When I started working on The Turn of the Screw, those words
came back loud and clear. Britten's score rarely gives the singer the luxury of
an instrument in the pit playing his or her part. You're on your own. This opera
is really chamber music - each singer and instrumentalist responsible for his
or her part. Nobody holding an instrument in the pit can help you. All you can
do is listen and watch for the pulse, and hope you're prepared.
As an understudy I spent hours watching the principals
work to incorporate the complex musical elements with the demands of the stage.
Although I was eager for the chance to prove myself, I confess I was relieved
to sit this one out the first time around. The varied demands of the program I
was in had prevented me from feeling prepared for this particular understudy assignment.
To put it simply: I had barely scratched the surface when staging rehearsals began.
In my situation, there were several of us understudying
the Governess. The soprano performing the role was very reliable, so none of us
thought we would actually get to perform it. But that didn't relieve the pressure.
I remember one rehearsal during which our Governess was feeling a bit under the
weather. With a gesture toward the assembled fleet of sopranos, she said, "Maybe
one of our young artists could take over." For a moment we all held our breath,
wondering who would be the "lucky" one. Our sighs of relief did not go unnoticed
when she decided she could continue!
