Utah Festival Opera's 4 productions a little uneven

UTAH FESTIVAL OPERA, Eccles Center, Logan, Wednesday through Saturday, additional performances through Aug. 12 (435-355-2787)

LOGAN — The Utah Festival Opera is bigger this year. It has expanded the number of productions. It has enlarged the orchestra pit. It features larger casts and has a larger orchestra. And some of the productions are on a grand scale.

The good news about all of this is that it's exciting — it's exciting to see the growth in the opera company, and it's exciting to sit in the audience during the very full-sounding ensemble numbers.

On the other hand, all this expansion isn't without growing pains.

The downside is that the quality is a little uneven between the four main productions.

• "PORGY & BESS," for example, is first-rate in all respects. The sets are beautiful and so are the costumes. And most importantly, the entire cast — leads, supporting roles, chorus — are terrific.

The opera begins with Alaine Rodin as Clara singing "Summertime." She does a beautiful job, and from that moment forward, it doesn't let down.

All the popular hits that came from this show ("I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'," "It Ain't Necessarily So") live up to high expectations — but at least as much fun are the lesser-known gems (Lori Brown Mirabal as Serena mourning her dead husband in "My Man's Gone Now").

In addition to excellent vocal performances, the cast has created well-rounded, sympathetic characters. Haqumai Sharpe deserves particular mention for his detestably slimy, smooth characterization of Sportin' Life, capped off with his fluid body movements.

And the brutish Crown (Ashley Howard Wilkinson) is so physically built that he looks as if he could rival the Incredible Hulk — which makes him all the more dominating over the petite Bess (Rachelle Perry Ward).

Ward, and Richard Hobson as Porgy, also deserve mention for outstanding performances in the lead roles.

The only thing in this production of "Porgy & Bess" that doesn't deserve a positive review is the set changes, which occurred frequently enough and took long enough that during the reviewed performance last weekend, it brought the opera's momentum to an abrupt halt, while the audience listened to various thumps and bangs backstage.

Since the next scene would sometimes open with sound effects before the curtains opened, it could be a little confusing to differentiate which were the intentional sound effects and which were accidental.