Bristol University Opera Society, the Winston Theatre.
10-13th February 2010
The blackest of Mozart’s ‘opera buffa’ is a black comedy that smokes with cartoonish levels of passion. Don Giovanni encourages every appetite for melodrama that a respectable opera-goer might harbour in secret. It has it all; savage murder, deceit, love, lust, sick jokes and angry women. When Mozart penned his opera in 1787 it is fairly certain, however, that his vision of excess included neither catwalks nor SLR cameras. Care of the University of Bristol Operatic Society, affectionately known as ‘BOpS’, 2010 has brought us all these ingredients in addition to the original score. Fortunately, the risky business of re-interpreting a classic yielded impressive results.
Music Student and Director James Dadd adopted an unashamedly theatrical adaptation of opera. Chorus members posed statuesquely against the heavy lighting effects in the background of both modern fashion studios and a Lydia Handy’s convincingly anxt-ridden Elvira became a moody supermodel. BOpS’ members rose to the task of a full-blown opera with aplomb and originality and evidently enjoyed strutting in modern glad-rags not Georgian garb. It would be too much to ask to expect the vocal proportions of Te Kanewa or Pavarotti from fledgling singers, but this production’s cast stated their case well to become professionals in the future. Each has a voice with individual qualities that blended beautifully; Dadd should be commended for casting his principles with such a successful vocal balance. BOpS are lucky to have at their disposal Royal Academy of Music graduate Declan Hamilton singing the infamous Don. Although by the third night his voice sounded tired, his experience shone through and evidently put the rest of the cast at ease.
Individual moments of humour and vocal brilliance included Monica Nash (Zerlina)’s nightingale-like English rendition of the ‘Vedrai Carino’ aria and some punchy top notes from tenor Luke Sinclair as Don Ottavio. Emily Vine(Donna Anna)’s voice has gained astonishing depth and maturity since her last operatic role in BOpS’ 2009 Marriage of Figaro and delivered a seamless performance that stood out for its evenness; she and Nash were two of the few whose acting and singing both remained at top notch. It was also a travesty that the role of Commendatore could not give Peter Stuart’s outstanding bass more stage time.
Some lack of confidence and strength that is perhaps inevitable with such a young cast stood out on occasion and there were moments when the updated setting confused the plot somewhat. But such slip-ups are easily forgiven at University level compared to the overall amount that has been achieved. Matthew Pearson deserved congratulations for dealing with the logistical nightmare and appalling acoustic faced by his talented orchestra in the Winston Theatre. As he energetically glued together any resulting sticky moments, the work of Karen Ainsworth’s production team could shine through for its similar energy; a stunning piece of amateur drama and music happened here all at once and we can only look forward with curiosity to BOpS’ next project The Mikado.
The Mikado , a 24-hour production, will be performed for one night only on May 3rd 2010. Go to http://www.sta.bristol.ac.uk/boxoffice nearer the date to reserve tickets or contact chair.bopsoc@bristol.ac.uk for more information.
Katy Austin
