The Flying Dutchman at Des Moines Metro Opera
One thinks of Dutchman as grand opera… How would it come across in a 500-seat auditorium? The answer, at least on July 4, was quite impressively indeed… And Joshua Borths’ staging admirably managed logistics as well as character development.
— Scott Cantrell, Dallas Morning News
Director Joshua Borths has put his stamp on the staging with great invention. Without spoiling any effect, he staged a pantomime during the overture that cleverly sets up Senta’s obsession with the Dutchman and brilliantly suggests a union of spirits at opera’s end with an assist from the trap door… and on this occasion it was miraculous.
Other than the rollicking scenes where the chorus can overtake the stage, this is quite a talky piece, with long stretches offering limited opportunities for movement. Mr. Borths has solved that by using the layout of the thrust space to keep characters logically moving about so that they play to all sides of the house… Moreover, his crowd movement was masterfully fluid and created shifting, meaningful stage pictures.
—James Sohre, Opera Today
Director Joshua Borths demonstrated keen understanding of Wagner’s symbolic tale. Visual simplicity allowed the emotional undercurrents to percolate. Borths’ decision to show glimpses of Senta’s childhood during the overture was a wise addition. The audience watched Senta’s obsession develop, so when the fated lovers finally met, we understood her motivations. In less capable hands, these characters might come across as one-dimensional, but Borths gave them depth that was refreshing but still true to Wagner’s vision.
—Meghan Klinkenborg, Little Village
The Falling and the Rising at Des Moines Metro Opera
Within this site-specific ambience, and assessing the limitations of the venue, director Joshua Borths has fashioned a beautiful, even poetic production, investing it with every possible nuance. There are some shortcomings in the dramaturgy, and Mr. Borths has assessed them and found the best possible story-telling solution. On first viewing, I either did not feel the Soldier was always involved enough in a given stretch, or I wondered if, in her coma, she was actually occasionally some other character, like the Colonel’s dead wife. We might have lost the thread of her illness, except the director created a wonderful piece of stagecraft.
After the Soldier was injured, put on a gurney, and hooked up to an IV, the tube was very long, and wherever she went on stage she remained visually connected to her “condition” by this faux umbilical cord. I also liked the practical Skype displays in the opening scenes. Borths lavished a lot of attention on creating believable yet archetypal characters. He made great use of the cast to change simple set pieces to suggest the different settings, and I especially enjoyed his inventive positionings on the platforms and stairs.
—James Sohre, Opera Today
Joshua Borths staging demonstrated the strength of simplicity. He utilized the small cast in a versatile manner that allowed the audience to focus on each scene, supporting the emotions rather than distracting from them. Borths maintained a narrative thread throughout the Soldier’s journey, stringing the various stories together through her discovery of dog tags across the stage. His creative incorporation of the military props was clever and refreshing. One particularly memorable scene had three of the singers using a parachute to mimic the clouds, evoking the weightless wonder with an otherwise practical piece of equipment. I have to commend Borths for understanding how to let Redler’s and Dye’s emotional opera soar without weighing it down.
—Meghan Klinkenborg, Schmopera