My column of Aug. 13 enti-tled "Seattle Opera's white-haired boy" aroused so much interest I am encouraged to continue the Speight Jenkins Saga, which I can report on firsthand, having been present at the opening of all the operas under Speight Jen-kins' direction for the past 20 years.
In 1981, Seattle Opera was approaching its 20th anniversary. Glynn Ross, the opera founder, had already established Seattle's Wagnerian tradition by staging the complete "Ring des Nibelungen," all four operas within one week, festival style, the first opera company in America to do so at the time. It was a truly great achievement, one that has been going on since 1975.
The board of trustees thought it time for a change. Seattle was growing and becoming more sophisticated. It wanted something more exciting. The selection committee interviewed many highly experienced candidates.
Then along came along a young, classical-music critic and Wagner expert, Speight Jenkins, in town to give a lecture on "Die Walküre." He was invited by one of the trustees to give a talk on opera to the selection committee, which he did with much enthusiasm for three hours, not realizing it was a job interview. It was suggested that he apply for the job. The rest is history. Speight Jenkins was appointed general director of Seattle Opera on Dec. 20, 1982, and immediately began plans to forge a new "Ring" for Seattle.
The usual role of an artistic director is to run an opera company, select the operas, assemble producers, directors and crew, book the talent, woo the donors, socialize with the sponsors and keep the cash flowing, and attend an occasional dress rehearsal. From the very beginning, Speight Jenkins was not the usual impresario. He has always been deeply involved with selecting the producers and directors, working very closely with the designers and producers to create a team and bring his concept to life, constantly advising on the smallest details.
Above all, he is deeply concerned for the welfare of his singers, scouring the city for a certain pair of tennis shoes favored by a tenor, or looking for a needle thin enough to sew the beads of a diva's gown, waiting with singers in emergency rooms through fainting spells, sore throats, strained vocal cords, bilious attacks. Singers always like to come back to Seattle and are extremely loyal, sometimes even choosing to come to Seattle after they are more famous and can command more money elsewhere.
This loyalty was put to the test when he called Sheri Greenawald at midnight three days before opening night, asking her to sing as Mimi in "La Bohème" because Nucia Focile had a medical emergency. This same production of "La Bohème" sold out nine shows, 26,543 paid tickets. That is 1 percent of the greater Seattle population. That means one out every 100 people in the region saw the Puccini opera, making Seattle the highest per-capita opera-going city in the nation.
When he is not producing, Speight Jenkins spends his time lecturing on his favorite subject, opera and Wagner; broadcasting previews for the upcoming operas; lecturing high-school students and recording symposiums. When he is not lecturing or producing, he is traveling the opera circuit three months out of the year, searching for talent, listening for just that one special voice or theatrical ability.
One of his protégées was English soprano Jane Eaglen, who made her opera debut in "Norma" as Norma in 1994, Turandot in 1996, and made world history as Isolde in 1998. Opera buffs converged from 45 states and 15 countries to hear the soprano perform Isolde with acclaimed tenor Ben Heppner as Tristan. Critics were flying in from London, Germany and Milan. A few heralded Jenkins' pairing of world-class Wagner stars Eaglen and Heppner as unparalleled since performances in the 1930s.
The impresario had conceived the idea four years earlier at Cutters Bayhouse, while lunching with Eaglen at a window table overlooking Elliott Bay. For decades the opera world had been waiting for singers with enough artistic stamina to perform the notoriously difficult score. When Jenkins heard Eaglen, he knew he'd found his Isolde. It didn't take long to convince Heppner (Tristan), whom Jenkins had cham-pioned years before the tenor achieved international fame. The New York Times intimated at the time that it could be the pinnacle of Jenkins' career if all went well, and I am pleased to say it did. Another great triumph for Seattle Opera and mile-stone for Speight Jenkins in his pursuit of Wagner.
Jenkins lives and breathes opera. He pub-lished a 1,482-word treatise on the Seattle Opera Web site explaining how to adapt a laptop computer to the vagaries of Europe's phone system. With the help of the opera guild, he organized 9,000 opera lovers to write letters to Congress to save the National Endowment for the Arts. He also inaugurated the Young Singers Training Program. And he replies personally to all his fan mail.
During his 20 years he has brought us many mystical and magical operas, starting with a lush production of "The Ballad of Baby Doe," completely new to Seattle, continuing his Wagner series with spectacular productions of "Tannhäuser," "Der fliegende Holländer," "Die Meistersinger von Nürnbert" and "Lohengrin," not forgetting his new production of the Rochaix and Israel "Ring" Cycle, a completely new "Ring," different concept, and very controversial in 1985.
The performance was greeted with boos and bravos, letters of complaint and praise poured in, but Speight Jenkins stood his ground, and after some adjustments and several other productions, in 1991 Seattle finally accepted the new concept. By 1995, Speight Jenkins fulfilled his lifelong dream to make horses fly. The Walküre maidens flew across the stage on horses to utter the famous battle cry. Seattle opera-goers were delighted, the performances were sold out and Speight Jenkins had another triumph, drawing national and international audiences from 19 countries and all 50 states (53 percent of those in attendance were from out of state), selling out all three "Ring" Cycles with an estimated positive economic impact of $26 million to the com-munity.
The third "Ring" Cycle in 2001 and the Century 21 project reaffirmed Seattle Opera's commitment to excellence.
In just the first 10 months, the Century 21 Capital Campaign raised more than $4.5 million towards its $7 million goal, which was ultimately achieved. The 66-percent completion rate the first year of the campaign is owed to 66 contributors, a com-mitted community and an effective board of trustees.
The 2001 "Ring" was in sharp contrast with its two immediate predecessors.
The director of design was Stephen Wadsworth, who designed a wonderful "Green Ring" with tall firs reminiscent of the Pacific Northwest, and Jane Eaglen achieved another musical triumph singing Brünnhilde.
Once again there were sold-out performances and international acclaim for Seattle Opera's Wagner Festival, and Seattle Opera kept its lead as the Wagner Capital of the United States. And, of course, this marked another success for Speight Jenkins, who is planning another "Ring" for 2005.
Speight Jenkins also engineered a smooth move from the old opera house to the Mercer Arts Arena and presented several operas especially designed for that stage. All this culminated in the pro-duction of "Parsifal" in the new Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, fulfilling Speight Jenkins' dream of staging the complete Wagner cannon.
Any director who can make horses fly, swans glide, dragons speak, donors donate, sponsors continue sponsoring, inspire loyalty in the singers and devotion from his staff, and achieve the continuing support of the board of trustees truly deserves the crown of success.
The arts community, Seattle Opera and local opera enthusiasts and subscribers are indeed fortunate to have Speight Jenkins at the helm of the Seattle Opera for another 10 years.
Here endeth The Speight Jenkins Saga for the present.
To be continued....
Congratulations! TTFN
Linda Greenwald, a.k.a. Linda of London, is a Queen Anne resident and consultant on all things British. She can be reached at qanews@nwlink.com
