'The Odyssey' has it all: Opera, Dolly Parton and puppets

Can you have a "picnic operetta" without a picnic? Passing food around among strangers isn't such a good idea amid a COVID surge. So Mixed Precipitation's annual picnic operetta is now a "pickup truck opera," placing most of its sets, puppets and performers in the bed of a St. Paul-built 2011 Ford Ranger and attached trailer. The picnicking part is strictly a bring-your-own proposition for you and your pod.

Since late July, the troupe has been bringing its latest comedic concoction of opera and popular tunes of more recent vintage to farms and parks around the state, finally landing in the Twin Cities on Sunday night. That's when "The Odyssey" was presented within the sloping amphitheater of Eagan's Caponi Art Park.

And it was as breezy and enjoyable as the company's creations customarily are. Spinning harrowing tales of monsters, witches and shipwrecks with the musical assistance of Renaissance/early baroque composer Claudio Monteverdi and country legend Dolly Parton, it proved an ideal entertainment for pandemic-weary audiences, one as full of hope and optimism as any story full of death can be.

Even folks pretty well versed in opera could be forgiven for saying, "There's an opera of 'The Odyssey'?" Yes, Monteverdi adapted part of Homer's ancient episodic epic in 1640, titling it "The Return of Ulysses to His Homeland." And Mixed Precipitation scored a pair of outstanding leads to sing its arias in soprano Momoko Tanno and bass-baritone Rodolfo Nieto, familiar to many for his performances with Minnesota Opera and Theater Latté Da.

But let's face it: It's hard to upstage Dolly Parton. Monteverdi's music can seem pretty understated when placed next to full-cast belt-outs on such tunes as "Big Wind" and "Light of a Clear Blue Morning." With each member of the pit orchestra — er, flatbed orchestra — also pulling down duty as actors, singers and puppeteers, the musicians displayed admirable versatility.

A standout among them was fiddler/soprano Joni Griffith as Circe — seductively pulling English subtitles from her hair and blouse. Jason Kornelis also impressed when he set down his cello and assumed the central role of Ulysses' son, Telemaco, in the final act.

Also hard to upstage were the puppets created by Duane Tougas and Eleanor Schanilec, particularly a voracious Cyclops that could be nightmarish if it weren't so comically over-the-top. But that's just one of several clever staging ideas, including a very silly final bloodbath at Ulysses and Penelope's house.

Twin Citians don't get to hear Monteverdi's music very often, and it's solidly delivered in this production with the unusual aid of a banjo and guitar. There's a very well-executed full-cast fugue in the first act, Nieto's booming bass serves the most villainous characters well, and Tanno makes Minerva's warnings captivating. So this offbeat adaptation works whether your art form of choice is opera, country or the classics.

Rob Hubbard is a freelance classical music critic. • wordhub@yahoo.com

7 p.m. Friday, Dodge Nature Center, 1701 Charlton Av., West St. Paul

6:30 p.m. Aug. 26, Central Park Bandshell, 430 2nd Av. NW., Faribault

7 p.m. Aug. 27, Tony Schmidt Park, 3500 Lake Johanna Blvd., Arden Hills

2 p.m. Aug. 28, Oak Hill Park, 3201 Rhode Island Av. S., St. Louis Park

3 p.m. Aug. 29, Cedar Lake East Beach, 2000 Upton Av. S., Mpls.

2 p.m. Sept. 4-5, Alexis Bailly Vineyard, 18200 Kirby Av., Hastings

2 p.m. Sept. 11, Swede Hollow Park, 657 E. Beaumont St., St. Paul

3 p.m. Sept. 12, JD Rivers' Children's Garden, 2900 Glenwood Av. N., Mpls.

Tickets: $25-$10, suggested donation

Information: mixedprecipitation.org