The concept was good … but the show was not nearly as good as it could have been. I was excited to realize the music was from “bona fide” opera–music appropriated for _The Infernal Comedy_ rather than written for it; unfortunately, the emotional range covered by the arias was just so narrow. (I expect this is part of what laenchen, above, meant by repetitive.) Why did the two ladies sing every time about betrayal and accusations and cruelty? Why not ALSO let them give voice to the idolization that Unterweger experienced, the fantasies of reforming him, and the excitement at being near a celebrity?

Ms. Meghnani has a terrific voice, resonant and powerful. It was cool to see Mr. Malkovich in person. But I don’t appreciate a performance explicitly styling itself the product of creators’ incompatible visions (Unterweger, ‘editor,’ ‘publisher’) or calling attention to being half-finished–suspension of disbelief or not, it’s sloppy and indeed, not up the standards of Hill Auditorium or UMS.