Her 'Since my man’s gone now' was raw but astonishingly moving-one of the highlights of a solid, and solidly entertaining, revival of a (the?) great American classic.' Porgy’s second scene proved a fine showcase for soprano Mary Elizabeth Williams, who demonstrated that Gershwin (and librettist Dubose Heyward’s) rather one-dimensional characters are nonetheless capable of surprising psychological depth. In subordinate roles, baritone Michael Redding was a virile and effective Crown, with lots of requisite swagger and a ringing sound. Baritone Hawkins, a SO favourite, has a warm, rich sound, and very considerable finesse on opening night, his sensitive restraint was tarnished by occasional balance issues between singer and brass-heavy orchestra. That swings from near-caricature to gritty realism. Soprano Daltirus brings stature and a sophisticated musical delivery to a role Leads Gordon Hawkins as Porgy and Lisa Daltirus as Bess embody a more classical sensibility, and a rather refined one at that. Alto Gwendolyn Brown’s Maria knowingly achieves considerable theatrical effect with her small character role. The show-tune idiom associated with Sportin’ Life’s two big numbers (excellently sung, acted, and danced by tenor Jermaine Smith) are frankly treated as star turns. In a way, Seattle Opera’s production doesn’t particularly try to smooth over these inconsistencies. Discussions about where exactly it fits in the repertoire, not to mention its generic implications, are ultimately unsatisfactory: it is what it is, and the occasional lurches in tone from rather conventional old-school opera to Broadway show are part of its fabric.

Its status as an opera has always been more a complicated proposition.

' Porgy is a treasure trove of magnificent music, a compendium of one great number after another. Mary Elizabeth Williams as Serena with Gordon

Seattle opera 2011 season