by Michael Buzzelli
“I always fall for the truly cold, cold people, cold men, because I decide their reserve and awkwardness is really bottled-up warmth that they’re waiting for me to release, an act for which they’ll repay me with extravagant love.”
-Thomas Mallon, “Fellow Travelers”
Timothy Laughlin (Logan Wagner) meets the cold, but confident Hawkins Fuller (Erik Nordstrom) in 1950s Washington, D.C. at the height of the Red Scare, when Senator Joe McCarthy (Daniel Teadt) and his ilk are rooting out Communists, intellectuals, and homosexuals in Gregory Spears and Greg Pearce’s adaptation of Thomas Mallon’s “Fellow Travelers.”
It’s a cautionary tale of forbidden love (like most all operas) brought into the 20th Century. Hawk and Tim’s love story is tragic (like most operas), and it’s filled with tumultuous ups and downs. Hawk helps Tim get a job working alongside Tommy McIntyre (Yazid Gray) for Senator Charles E. Potter (Joel Balzun). Tim repays Hawk by buying a book and gifting it to him. This leads Hawk to show up unexpectedly at his apartment and initiate a romantic relationship. It’s Timothy’s first, but Hawk has more experience.
Much more experience.
Both men are hiding their true natures from a society that hates and fears homosexuals. They risk being fired from their jobs and, possibly, blacklisted. At one point, Hawk has to take a lie-detector test to prove he’s not gay. His suave self-assurance helps him pass the test.
Both men have a confidant in Mary Johnson (Shannon Crowley), a secretary who also has her own problems.
Wagner is excellent as the timid Timmy, a shy and earnest Catholic boy who wants to defend America against Communism. When he falls for Hawk, he has to reconcile his passions with his faith. Wagner’s voice is amazing. It’s a star turn for the talented tenor.
Nordstrom is delightful as the cold, cocky Hawk, a player who doesn’t give away his hand. Yet, deep down, Hawk loves Timmy, even if he can’t admit it. Nordstrom can ride the line between detached and distraught. His voice resonates mellifluously.
Crowley is spectacular in her role as Mary. She looks longingly at both characters, Hawk and Tim, secretly loving each of them in the only ways that they will let her. She hits some incredibly high notes.
The set by Jacquelyn Scott is efficient, compact, and functional, aided by some clever projection design. There were sixteen scenes in the opera, but the audience was given just enough to imagine each new setting. Scene changes seemed laboriously slow, considering there weren’t that many extraneous props (beds, desks, chairs, etc.), but Conductor Antony Walker and the orchestra filled the time with transitional music.
Director Brian Staufenbiel staged a dynamic interpretation of the piece. There is a separate national touring version of the show that will traverse multiple cities, but Pittsburgh will not be one of them.
The production proves that opera doesn’t need to be some stuffy, seventeenth-century. The form, like all forms of art, can change with the times and tell iconic contemporary stories.
-MB
There are three exciting shows left in the season: “Curlew River” (January 24 to February 1, 2026), “Time to Act” (February 28 through March 8, 2026), and “Falstaff” (April 28 through March 3, 2026). For tickets and more information about Pittsburgh Opera, please click here.
