Toronto Live performance Orchestra: Romeo & Juliet. Charles Gounod: Romeo and Juliet, Je veux vivre and Ah! Lève-toi soleil!; Giacomo Puccini: La Boheme, Je veux vivre; Freddie Mercury: Bohemian Rhapsody; Jules Massenet: Werther, Pourquoi me réveiller; Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet; Taylor Swift and Put up Malone: Fortnight; Leonard Bernstein: West Facet Story, Maria and Tonight; Lyn: My Future, from My Love from the Star; Giuseppe Verdi: La Traviata, Parigi o cara; Des’ree: I’m Kissing You, from Romeo + Juliet; Gaetano Donizetti: Don Pasquale, Tornami a dir che m’ami; The Cardigans: Lovefool, from Romeo + Juliet. Toronto Live performance Orchestra, Inventive Administrators Sharon Lee and Marcus Scholtes. July 29, 2025, Palais Royale.
What’s one of the simplest ways to spend a Tuesday night in Toronto this summer season? For me, it was experiencing considered one of six themed live shows offered by the Toronto Live performance Orchestra on the intimate setting of Palais Royale, in opposition to the gorgeous backdrop of an orange solar dipping into Lake Ontario.
The timeless story of Romeo and Juliet has impressed music throughout genres from classical to trendy. Inventive Administrators Sharon Lee and Marcus Scholtes took turns main the 20-something sturdy ensemble via an eclectic assortment of opera, symphonic masterpieces and modern hits that celebrated what Sharon known as, “the proper of affection on the unsuitable time.”
The Program
The live performance’s namesake work, Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, was probably the most substantial piece of the night. Initially orchestrated for a full orchestra, it posed some problem for the small ensemble to play cohesively and to stability the sounds from the varied sections. Nonetheless, the prestos felt climatic and the love theme reprisal was superbly performed by the strings.
The orchestra was fully in its parts with lighter works that included The Cardigans’ “Lovefool” and “I’m kissing you” by Des’ree, each numbers from the 1996 Hollywood film “Romeo + Juliet.”
The Taylor Swift and Put up Malone hit “Fortnight” was given a refreshing association by Sharon. As a nod to her heritage, Sharon included Lyn’s “My Future” from the Okay-drama My Love from the Star, during which her violin virtuosity additionally dazzled within the solo.
Vocalists: Soprano Lynn Anoush Isnar and Tenor Colin Ainsworth
Soprano Lynn Anoush Isnar and Tenor Colin Ainsworth added star energy to the live performance. Lynn made a grand entrance in a fiery purple robe with “Musetta’s Waltz” from Puccini’s La Boheme.
Her silvery tone was nicely suited to Irving Berlin’s love tune “Reaching to the Moon.” However, it was “Je veux vivre” from Charles Gounod’s opera Romeo and Juliet that showcased her unbelievable vary and colors. This piece demanded precision, and her excessive notes — a fleeting excessive D and a sustained excessive C — had been effortlessly safe.
Additionally from the identical opera was the tenor aria “Ah! lêve-toi soleil,” which Colin delivered with equal measures of tenderness and energy, with a ringing excessive Bb.
His “Pourquoi me réveiller” from Jules Massenet’s opera Werther was stuffed with lyricism and introspection. However, I loved him most in his Broadway persona. As Tony singing “Maria” in Leonard Bernstein’s West Facet Story, his creamy voice and charming stage presence channelled Mario Lanza.
Lyn and Colin made a formidable duo with matching vocal prowess, and their duets had been a number of the night’s highlights. Collectively, they introduced alive the tender chemistry between Norina and Ernesto in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale. The melodic strains of their “Tornami a dir che m’ami” had been superbly phrased with chic harmonies. They made one other good-looking pair as Violetta and Alfredo in Verdi’s La Traviata. Their duet “Parigi, o cara” was stuffed with bittersweet ardour and craving.
The night culminated in a heart-pounding orchestral association of Freddy Mercury’s well-known Bohemian Rhapsody that had everybody grooving and tapping of their seats.
The vocalists returning as star-crossed lovers Maria and Tony in West Facet Story’s “Tonight” ended the live performance on a excessive word.
It was an exhilarating night to have fun love, in all its kinds.
- Discover the remainder of Toronto Live performance Orchestra Presents Symphony within the Metropolis Summer season 2025 [HERE].
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Denise Lai is a Physiotherapist and School Professor. She is an alumnus of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and a rusty piano participant.
