FALSTAFF
Composed by: Giuseppe Verdi
Libretto by: Arrigo Boito
Directed by: Jose Maria Condemi
Opera San Jose| Opera Santa Barbara - 2013 + 2023
Conducted by: Andrew Whitfield
Lighting by: David Cuthbert
*Available to rent
Selected as a finalist in the World Stage Design 2017 exhibit in Taipei, Taiwan
“The opera unfolded on designer Steven C. Kemp’s ingenious set, which uses a set of concentric wooden circles, representing the wine cask in which Falstaff is most at home, to evoke both a tavern and the upscale Ford home. For a production whose intoxicating pleasures go right to the head, the image could scarcely have been more apt.”
Joshua Kosman
San Francisco Chronicle"The first indication of success came when the curtain opened to reveal set designer Steven C. Kemp's realization of director José Maria Condemi's production concept. The brown interior of the Garter Inn, bathed in subdued yellow light by lighting designer David Lee Cuthbert, was depicted as the inside of a huge keg of alcohol, with two concentric circles arranged in a three-dimension pattern. When the action switched to a garden in Windsor, the inner circle opened to reveal the back of the brightly lit garden, before which Alice Ford, Meg Page and Mistress Quickly amused themselves as they read the identical letters they had received from the inept Sir John. The contrast between the two realities was a joy to behold."
Jason Victor Serinus
OperaNews
