Minnesota Opera conjures a familiar Gretel

Do you suppose that Minnesota Opera likes Angela Mortellaro? And that the soprano enjoys being in the Twin Cities?

During an interview, Mortellaro counted 10 appearances in Minnesota since 2010, the year she entered the Resident Artists' Program here.

That number includes her upcoming performance as Gretel in the Minnesota Opera's production of "Hansel and Gretel." Directed by Doug Varone, with Anne Manson conducting the orchestra, the production opens Saturday at the Ordway Center in St. Paul.

We will enjoy more Mortellaro next spring when she returns to sing in the world premiere of "The Manchurian Candidate" by Kevin Puts and Mark Campbell. That team produced the landmark "Silent Night" for Minnesota Opera in 2011. And yes, Mortellaro sang a small role in that production.

"That is what makes Minnesota so special," she said, referring to the company's willingness to push new work.

"Hansel and Gretel" is old work, of course, dating from 1893. It's the best-known contribution to the canon from the 19th-century German composer Engelbert Humperdinck.

The popular piece — with its tuneful melodies and familiar story — holds a special place in Mortellaro's heart. She sang Gretel in her professional debut with Sarasota Opera in 2010.

Varone is pushing her into a new physical vocabulary for the role. Gretel, she explained, is a child, with looser, more casual movements — in contrast to the regality of many lead opera roles.

The soprano spent two seasons in Minnesota as a resident artist. During that time she sang a sprightly Amore in "Eurydice," a "saucy, hammy" Despina (wrote one critic) in "Cosi Fan Tutte" and key roles in "Werther" and "Lucia di Lammermoor." Last March, she was back for Dominick Argento's "The Dream of Valentino" with James Valenti.

Elsewhere, she will originate the role of Charlie Parker's wife in "Yardbird" this season at Opera Philadelphia, where she sang Anna in "Nabucco." She also performed again at Sarasota in "Die Fledermaus" and at Florida Grand Opera.

Mortellaro grew up in Brookfield, a Milwaukee suburb, content to sing in the ensembles of school musical productions. She went to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with her eye on becoming a music teacher. A mentor suggested that she think about performance, and she went to Rice University in Houston for graduate school. There she learned about the life of an opera singer.

"I didn't understand what it meant to be an opera singer," she said. "I didn't understand how to do an entire role, and the technique that required.

Dale Johnson, Minnesota's artistic director, found Mortellaro during an audition in New York. It was a terrifying trip for the young singer (her first time in the big city) but rewarding. Johnson chose her for the opera's program.

She'd be happy to get back to New York, at the Metropolitan Opera, but that might take a few years.

"An opera career is no different from any other career," she said. "But more than what houses you sing in, I want to do great work. You can find that at a lot of places that are not the Met."

Mortellaro has been praised for her ability to act as well as sing. They aren't separate, she said, and it's a natural progression for her.

"You can express a lot in the sound," she said. "Singing accurately is one level, but you try to reach for musicality, and acting is part of that."

"Damrau's 'Queen of the Night' is just amazing," she said of the soprano's take on the famous aria from Mozart's "The Magic Flute."

One of Mortellaro's early career highlights was "Silent Night," in which she sang a small role and covered the lead soprano. She was fully aware during rehearsals and performances that she was involved in something special, she said.

"It's hard to explain," she said. "We knew the piece was special and it was a special story. We all felt personally attached to it. It's our show."

She can't go back to that experience, but she is looking forward to "The Manchurian Candidate," which Puts wrote and which has workshops in Minnesota in early December.

Mortellaro and her husband (also a singer) live in Chicago, although they are between apartments.