Soprano Lee Abrahmsen’s achievement in the title role is remarkable, in that she not only clearly establishes a character that is unfamiliar to the entire audience, but also endears the character to us, leading to a moving finale to the brisk one-act opera. Despite a loving proposal of marriage from Dr Kirke, Stella‘s anguish drives her to make the tragic decision to take her own life. Weldon also recognises Stella, and is set to tell Mrs Chase about her, unaware of Stella’s connection to the Mayor. In a bayside Melbourne town in 1909, Dr Kirke’s new nurse Stella is recognised by Mayor Chamley as the woman he had an affair with, and subsequently abandoned, ten years earlier.
A controversial and outspoken figure, Marshall-Hall is believed to have based the themes of his libretto for Stella on his own exclusion and judgment by members of conservative Melbourne society. Marshall-Hall made significant contribution to music in Melbourne, serving as Professor of Music at University of Melbourne before going on to establish Melba Conservatorium in 1900. A substantial debt of gratitude is owed to savvy saviour Pat Miller, artistic director of lyric Opera of Melbourne, for resurrecting the piece and restoring it to musical glory.Īrriving from London in 1891, composer and conductor G.W.L. Based on the beautiful score and affecting story, Stella has been unjustly neglected. When a piece of theatre has been neglected for 100 years since its premiere there is usually a good (or, should I say, bad) reason. Brimming with rapturous Puccini-esque music and sung by a wonderfully well-matched cast of five, Lyric Opera of Melbourne’s hand-polished production of long lost Melbourne opera Stella is a gem.
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