If you think times are hard now — with a crude, cruel, and racist president — imagine what it was like to be Queer during the McCarthy era. In the 1950s, Sen. Joseph McCarthy created both the Red Scare and the Lavender Scare: the first by accusing government workers of supporting communism and other by ferreting out federal employees and members of the military suspected of homosexuality and accusing them of being traitors. Thousands of workers were fired from their jobs, horribly persecuted, and sometimes jailed.
Fellow Travelers (the term means communist sympathizers) is a beautiful, compelling opera that brings to life the passion of two Gay men who manage to navigate their way into true love, only to be shattered by the Lavender Scare.
This riveting story, based on a 2007 novel by Thomas Mallon, has been brought to life with an elegant, melodic score by Gregory Spears and a libretto by Greg Pierce. Director Kevin Newbury, who has been involved with this opera from the beginning, brought great skill and artistry to this new production.
The Seattle Opera run represents the first time a Queer love story has been performed on the mainstage and the first venue on a nationwide tour combining the opera with educational offerings for the public about the damage done to Queer people during the Lavender Scare and the threat of homophobia and transphobia today. (In a talk the week before the opening, Mallon said, “When I wrote the novel, it was history. Now it’s the news.”)
Plot
The opera follows Hawk Fuller (baritones Jarrett Ott and Joseph Lattanzi in alternating performances), a State Department employee and man-about-town, and Tim Laughlin (tenors Colin Aikins and Andy Acosta), a naïf fresh out of college. Their attraction quickly lands them in bed, where they perform a partially nude, simulated-sex opera duet, the first either of us had witnessed. (We confess: it was worth the price of the ticket!)
The ups and downs of this affair, as the two navigate their differences — Tim with his Catholic faith and Hawk with his taste for group sex — are paired with an office story. The women in Hawk’s office include good-natured, loyal Mary Johnson (Amber R. Monroe) and Miss Lightfoot (Vanessa Becerra), a nasty gossip who reports Hawk to the authorities. He is subjected to a humiliating test for homosexuality, while Tim struggles so intensely with his values and longings that he joins the Army. And all that is in Act One!
The second act is as compelling as the first, and has one of the most moving conclusions we've ever seen. It won't ruin the story for you if we mention that the final moments of the opera occur in front of a collage of photos of men and women who were forced to leave their government and military positions during the Lavender Scare.
A perfect production
Everything about this production was perfect, starting with Spears' gorgeous score, which combines minimalism and medieval troubadour music to support the shifting moods of the drama. The small orchestra (some 30 Seattle Symphony musicians, conducted by Steven Osgood) eloquently created the opera’s emotional atmosphere. Eric Jacobs’ lovely clarinet solos were particularly memorable.
In the challenging roles of Hawk and Tim, the opening night audience saw Ott as the confident, dominant partner and Aikins as the tentative, devout — yet thrilled — young Tim. The next day Lattanzi and Acosta delivered an even more assured vocal and dramatic performance. (Both have sung in many of this opera’s 16 previous productions.)
The hearts of the audience went out to these singers because of their honesty and abandon, and their ability to make their bodies and voices express passion, fear, regret, and joy. One of our favorite moments in the opera was Tim’s aria “Last Night,” in an early scene: he goes to church to confess his sin, only to leap up and thank God for the wonderful gift of love. Hawk’s virtuoso aria “Stay,” the best example of Spears’ use of troubadour music techniques, represents the turning point in the development of this complex character.
Perhaps the most difficult singing was that of soprano Monroe as Mary Johnson, the moral center of the drama. Her aria “I worry” is so long and challenging that we marveled that she was able to deliver it superbly two days in a row. In addition to deploying her spectacular voice, Monroe — in moments of cheerful acceptance as well as heartbreaking sorrow — modeled the behavior of a real ally and showed how victims of oppression can survive bad times with souls intact.
If Fellow Travelers sounds too grim, be assured that it contains refreshing moments of humor. For example, when Hawk gives Tim his cufflinks for Christmas, Tim objects that he can’t wear them because they show Hawk’s initials. Hawk assures him that he can come up with other words for H and F, and suggests “Holy Father.”
The simple, versatile set designed by Vita Tzykun provides exactly the right backdrop for the action. Newbury’s staging is inventive and effective throughout. He makes us feel Hawk and Tim’s experience of constantly being watched, constantly having to hide. Even the transitions between scenes add to the drama: when Hawk is being interrogated and subjected to a lie detector test, he answers “no” to every question about same-sex desire and activity, while simultaneously shedding his clothing and climbing into bed with Tim.
McCaw Hall appeared to be fully occupied for both performances of opening weekend, and the crowd was — unsurprisingly — very Queer and clearly delighted to attend an opera about Queer experience. The ending left many of us in tears and gave us much to think about.
Fellow Travelers is an authentic reminder that even in terrible times, hope and progress are possible, as Martin Luther King told us: "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."
Performances continue through March 1. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.seattleopera.org.
If you or a friend or family member has been fired from a government job for being Queer, you are invited to share the story along with a photograph for the Lavender Names Project. For more information, see www.seattleopera.org/performances-events/fellow-travelers/lavender-names-project.
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