|
TRYING to get children excited about opera may seem like a mission impossible. But for Music Theatre Wales, having people such as Michael McCarthy on board must make the task easier because his passion for contemporary opera is utterly infectious. He was bursting with enthusiasm as he talked excitedly about the company's latest production, Gwyneth and the Green Knight. "It's an adventure on the stage," said McCarthy, the company's arts director. "It's an Arthurian legend with a contemporary twist. "We've had children watching the rehearsals and they have been falling about laughing one minute then scared to breathe the next. They re-ally enjoy it - it's wonderful." Gwyneth and the Green Knight is a family show which follows the hero-ine's quest to become a Knight of the Round Table. Bored with peasant life, Gwyneth leaves home disguised as Sir Gawain's squire but soon finds herself caught up in a magical adventure. Her journey begins with a beheading competition and leads her to hidden dangers, magical creatures and a headless Green Knight. On the literature for the production, however, MTW has been careful to avoid the word "opera", labelling it instead a "musical adventure." "We're not ashamed of the word - people's perceptions of opera are usually more based on myth than real-ity," McCarthy said. "But we want people to come and give it a go. "Then they will realise opera is not something where you have to get dressed up, it's cheaper than a lot of pop concerts and it's a very enjoyable experience. "All the elitism which surrounds opera is just poppycock." Based in Cardiff, MTW started life in 1988 and is established as one of Britain's premier touring companies. But it still thrives on ambition. While its productions are always sung in English and concentrate on the contemporary, one of the company's aims is to commission an opera in Welsh. Its boast is it puts on "intimate opera with a big kick" and McCarthy says its small-scale formula is a winner. "We only ever perform at small theatres, between three to 400 seaters. "It's still the full operatic experience but with more impact." McCarthy believes the grandeur of larger theatres can sometimes over-shadow what is on the stage. As for the future, he says he hopes the company continues to expand in scope, both on the Welsh and international stage. |
| Western Mail arts pages web site: icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0900entertainment/0050artsnews/page.cfm?objectid=11777453&method=full&siteid=50082 |
| e-mail: |
Thursday, April 11, 2002 |
Older news
stories have been carefully archived.
2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999