Minnesota Opera’s “Manon Lescaut”

Alas, Kelly Kaduce’s Manon carried more than a whiff of the middle-aged hausfrau from Bremen. Had Kaduce possessed a deeper understanding of Puccini’s idiom and the Italian style, her other shortcomings would not have mattered so much.

The man dancing at Kaduce’s side bore an alarming resemblance to Osmo Vänskä, needing only a bottle of vodka to complete the successful red-faced impersonation.