Boston Midsummer Opera explores 'two faces' of Offenbach

Elizabeth Batton will perform in "Tales of Offenbach."

As a composer, Jacques Offenbach merged two contrasting impulses. He's renowned, on one hand, for his witty and sharply satirical operettas, which embody the sophistication of "light music." On the other hand, his best-known work is "Hoffmann," a dark, dramatic, full-scale opera that's unlike anything else in his catalog. (It was his last work, and one he didn't live to complete.)

Beginning Wednesday, Boston Midsummer Opera, whose mission is to present rising talent in accessible productions, presents "Tales of Offenbach," a revue of extracts from four of Offenbach's stage works: "The Brigands," "La Périchole," "Orpheus in the Underworld," and "Tales of Hoffmann." The show, which is sung in French and English, was assembled by artistic director Drew Minter. Susan Davenny Wyner conducts.

Wyner finds herself fascinated by what she calls Offenbach's "two faces," and the aim of the Midsummer show is to distill them both into a single evening. "Part of the fun is admiring the sleight of hand as the singers switch from role to role, often surprising us by becoming polar opposites of their previous characters," she writes in an e-mail.

Another, more basic motivation, according to Minter, is to give listeners "an appreciation for just how terrific a composer Offenbach really was," something that tends to get lost amid the boisterous humor. "He was a first-rate melodist," Minter writes in an e-mail, "and the variety of the melodies -- rollicking or serious -- gives us a great vehicle to showcase exceptional vocal talent."

Among the talent assembled for Midsummer's show is mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Batton. Her career began to take off when she won the prestigious Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 2000. The auditions have a reputation for unlocking doors for young singers, and for Batton the effect was immediate.

"Before I won the Met competition, I could barely even get auditions," she recalls by phone during a break in rehearsals. "After I won, I could get all sorts of auditions and started getting full-time work right away. I went from temping at various offices around the city to being a full-time singer."

Since then she's earned positive reviews in a variety of houses, including a turn as Olga in Boston Lyric Opera's production of Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" in 2005. Her ascent, though, will be put on hold soon, as Batton is pregnant with her first child and is due around New Year's. (Her husband is the tenor Garrett Sorenson.)

The pregnancy didn't affect the Midsummer production, other than necessitating a few costume changes, but she's canceled a number of future engagements, including two performances in the lead role of "Carmen." "It's sort of unlike taking time off from most other jobs," she says, where a woman can usually work up almost until delivery. "But it's just impossible to do 'Carmen' when you're big and pregnant."

Which is a shame, Minter writes, since "I'd love to see her do 'Carmen.' She has a very powerful mezzo-contralto voice, and she's a natural actress." Wyner adds that "she has the ability to enter completely into character as part of her musical exploration. She is a delight to work with."

The hiatus may be inconveniently timed for a singer who's been navigating the stages of career development; still, she's keeping her perspective. "There are all sorts of other reasons a singer might have to cancel, and this is the best one I can think of," she says, laughing.

Wednesday , Aug. 3, and Aug. 5 at the Tsai Center, Boston University. 617-227-0442, bostonmid summeropera.org

There's more opera around this weekend and in coming days. Boston Opera Collaborative offers performances of Poulenc's poignant and demanding "Dialogues of the Carmelites" this weekend and next. It's an ambitious project, not least for the large cast that the opera calls for. Marc Astafan directs and Michael Strauss conducts. At the Theodore Parker Church in West Roxbury. 617-517-5883, bostonoperacollaborative .org

Boston Lyric Opera is also putting on two free gigs. The first, on Aug. 7, is part of the city's Waterfront Performing Arts Series, including what BLO calls "Italian opera hits." That's at Christopher Columbus Park near Faneuil Hall. On Aug. 15 they perform operatic chestnuts at the Hatch Shell on the Esplanade, as well as selections from BLO's upcoming season, in a joint concert with the Boston Landmarks Orchestra. blo.org