In Bellini's Norma, the marathon vocal lines of the title role present a formidable challenge for any of today's sopranos.(On the Beat)

In Bellini's Norma, the marathon vocal lines of the title role present a formidable challenge for any of today's sopranos. Too often, it's the Adalgisa who walks off with the show and the reviews. But on October 7, Armenian soprano HASMIK PAPIAN opened a new production (by PAOLO MICCICHE) at Washington Opera and restored Norma to Norma. After a slightly nervous beginning with "Casta Diva," Papian gave a superbly sung performance, brimming with confidence; vocally, she also matched up nicely with IRINA MISHURA as Adalgisa. That she acquitted herself so well was a tribute to her stage smarts: the opera was staged in Constitution Hall, Washington Opera's temporary home, and the orchestra, led by EMMANUEL VILLAUME, was placed behind the singers; communication between stage and pit took place via TV monitors. Micciche's production, dominated by economical but distracting and curiously dated-looking projections, didn't help the soprano much; she was directed to perform "Casta Diva's cabaletta as if she were Dolly Levi descending into the Harmonia Gardens. (A full review of WO's Norma will appear in OPERA NEWS's January 2004 issue.)

Still, Papian is happy that Washington cast her from the get-go, since she has spent much of her ...