Wolf Trap Opera opened its summer fully staged opera season with Rossini’s La Cenerentola. Opening night was abuzz with laughter and fun in both the audience and the cast, who ate up their roles like a sumptuous feast.
Even from the staged overture, the audience was in stitches, not just from the antics of the actors, but the pairing of those antics with Rossini’s music. The great staging and acting, with direction by Joel Ivany, was music-informed down to the facial expressions, and with masterful playing from the orchestra and conducting by Louis Lohraseb, by way of example, the merest riff in the score would be matched by the raising of an eyebrow. In this way, the overture gave the audience the entire sound-and-visual world of the opera, telling the story and setting the scene.
Cinderella’s stepsisters Clorinda and Tisbe, played with aplomb by Angela Yam and Emily Treigle, nailed their portrayals as they strutted about first in their lounging clothes, then ostentatious gowns for Prince Ramiro’s ball. Yam in particular got to sing a lovely aria near the end of the show, unexpected for a score where the mezzo, Cenerentola, is the leading lady.
Entering vocally after her stepsisters, Cinderella, played by Sophia Maekawa, brought a delightful, pure grace and warmth to this production. Maekawa’s voice is beautiful, to the point that one wants to hear more of it volume-wise. That is to say, sometimes her piano dynamic felt too soft. However, the personality she brought to this character made it clear that the focus was on telling the story and not singing with cold perfection and roboticism. But the vocalism was there, with impressive coloratura, and as the performance progressed, one could hear her singing get stronger and stronger, warming up with a very free and lovely tone. I also loved how her voice carried in ensembles even in mid-range, as in the Act I finale.
Upon Ziniu Zhao’s entrance as the pompous and cruel-yet-somehow-still-bumbling Don Magnifico, I started to wonder which male role was going to seal the show. Rossini wrote plumb roles for men, and La Cenerentola has four of them. Zhao’s voice loved the space at The Barns, a booming comic bass with easy high register. In his aria “I miei rampolli femminini,” it almost felt like the orchestra and he were playing off of each other’s articulations.
Angel Raii Gomez as Prince Ramiro was incredible. He and Maekawa sang well together from their first duet, after she entered from a Harry Potter-style cabinet under the stairs. At this point in the story, the prince’s valet Dandini, played by Korin Thomas-Smith, is disguised as the prince. He was hilarious, and with the chorus backing him up in his first scene he got many, many laughs. Later in Act I, the duet “Zitto, zitto, piano, piano” between the prince and Dandini stood out as being tons of fun. Gomez and Thomas-Smith proved to be as well-matched vocally as Gomez and Maekawa.
Throughout the show, the chorus acted as its own character, as befits this work. All the soloists in the cast did well with coloratura, however, some tempi seemed so fast that it felt like there were notes that got obscured, particularly in Dandini’s Act I aria “Come un’ape.” That said, I could hear the men even when singing piano and staccato, a testament to both the composer’s good writing and the quality of the voices. Altogether, every ensemble number made sense of what can easily feel like chaos.
Finally among the principal cast, Cumhur Görgün as Alidoro felt like he stole the show at the end of Act I with his aria “Là del ciel nell’arcano profondo.” He possesses an extremely satisfying bass voice and by the end of the show truly felt like the “Fairy Godfather” of the story, as he not only helps Cinderella attend the prince’s ball but also is there when they meet later.
Moving on to the ball, Cinderella’s entrance was just what one wants from such a moment. There were fantastic reactions from the chorus, and Cinderella’s gown was amazing. I also loved the dance at the ball toward the end of the scene, not to mention the opulent palace set designed by Jacob A. Climer. With red as the primary color, and velvet curtains, I felt transported as if I myself was a guest at the ball.
In Act II, the prince’s aria “Sì, ritrovarla io guiro” brought the house down. Gomez had what felt like the cleanest coloratura of the cast, but more than that, his ornaments and variations were to die for, that aria sung in such a way for the world to envy, another point at which a male character stole the show. Following that, the audience was treated to an amazing duet between Dandini and Don Magnifico.
Correctly, the icing on the cake of this opera was the final scena, “Nacqui all’affanno…Non più mesta.” I loved Maekawa’s take on this aria, and her masterful rendition combined with the red-bejeweled crown in her costume made for the perfect ending, especially with her throwing of the wedding bouquet at the end.
It is possible for La Cenerentola to feel long and boring. This production did not, and impressively so for a show with a run time of three hours including intermission. It felt so light and fast-paced or engaging enough that this production turned me from a Cenerentola skeptic into a fan. Kudos to the entire cast and production team, and to Wolf Trap Opera for providing such wonderful programming during the summer.
Maggie Ramsey
La Cenerentola
Music by Gioachino Rossini
Libretto by Jacopo Ferretti
Cast and Production Staff:
Clorinda – Angela Yam; Tisbe – Emily Treigle; Angelina – Sophia Maekawa; Alidoro – Cumhur Görgün; Don Magnifico – Ziniu Zhao; Prince Ramiro – Angel Raii Gomez; Dandini – Korin Thomas-Smith; Chorus – Members of the Wolf Trap Opera Studio
Conductor – Louis Lohraseb; Director – Joel Ivany; Scenic & Costume Design – Jacob A. Climer; Lighting Design – Jason Hand; Hair & Makeup Design – Anne Nesmith; Associate Hair & Makeup Design – Melissa Sibert
Principal Coach – Christopher Turbessi; Chorus Master & Coach – Michael Lewis; Coaching – Joseph Stevens; Italian Diction – Ken Weiss, Stefano di Peppo; Supertitles – Tzu Kuang Tan; Production Stage Manager – Arturo Fernandez Jr.; Assistant Stage Manager – Diane Lin
The Barns at Wolf Trap, Vienna, VA, June 18, 2026
Top image: (Top Row) Angel Raii Gomez, Sophia Maekawa, Emily Treigle, Angela Yam (Bottom Row) Korin Thomas-Smith, Ziniu Zhao
All photos by Rich Kessler