Lodahl as Polo, along with Jonathan Gunthorpe and Damian Thantrey, handled this challenge well. In interviews, the performers discussed the difficulty of singing unfamiliar vowels, but showed no such trepidation onstage. Their Chinese counterparts were equally impressive — singing with full, clear voice and deep emotional resonance. Ming Zhao as Kublai and Zhou Xiaolin as Chuan Yun were particular favorites.
Production design is exceptional — central to the staging is the enormous rotating set, which serves as staircase, backdrop and prison cell for Polo at the beginning and end of the opera. Multiple projection screens provide color and detail, displaying scenery and text from Polo’s original work.
Although the opera is a bit on the long side, Marco Polo is a fascinating cultural concoction, and on balance an enjoyable evening at the theater. We in the present, who may at times feel we live on a planet more divided than ever, would do well to take Polo’s lessons to heart.
