| Many moments of theatrical excellence |
Welsh National Opera |
| Welsh National Opera- Madame Butterfly , Wales Milennium Centre , February 6, 2007 |
“...yet I am happy.”There were many moments of sublime excruciating beauty in this revival of WNO’s classic Madame Butterfly. The orchestra playing under the sensitive baton of, rightly acclaimed Puccini expert Julian Smith, was virtually perfect. The exquisite rendering of the Humming Chorus at the end of the first part of the second act was itself well worth the price of the ticket. Amanda Roocroft’s singing of the role of Cio-Cio-San may not have been totally of the very highest order but it was pretty near it, however her characterisation was totally captivating and so very moving. I was able to make good use of the packet of tissues thoughtfully issued by the company on the way into the theatre. Despite the startling beauty of the setting with its sumptuous surround of heart-lifting cherry trees in full blossom and the delicate finery of the brown and beige tones of the costumes, this is a very dark and sorry story made even more poignant by its surroundings. I have rarely entered an auditorium with such a feeling of nostalgia and anticipation as I had played the very small part of the cook in the original production at the New Theatre. There I had the privilege of being directed by the great Joachim Hertz, whose Germanic growl belied the immense sensitivity and understanding that he brought to the first making of this remarkable production which has sustained it for nearly thirty years and, on this showing, still has a great deal of life left in it. There was a slightly faltering start; Neal Davies was indisposed and unable to play the vital role of the American Consul Sharpness. His replacement was also suffering from a cold. Nevertheless Eddie Wade sang the role in a commanding manner, at the same time clearly expressing his concern for the impossible situation into which the innocent young fifteen-year old geisha was gaily dancing. This is a hugely demanding sing for the artist in the title role; Amanda Roocroft comes to terms with it superbly. Her joy and innocent belief in her oncoming, carefully arranged wedding, by the marriage broker Goro, sung with a clear combination of craftiness and subservience by Philip Lloyd Holtam, is so committed and sincere that she has renounced her faith and traditional way of living to live a western style marriage with the young naval Lieutenant Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton. When The Bonze, a Buddhist monk enters uttering imprecations against her for having taken to the foreign faith, and induces her friends and relatives to abandon her we know that things will not go according to plan. Yet she maintains she is happy and skips about fluttering her butterfly wings with delight. Paul Charles Clarke, using his fine tenor voice indicates to us that he is not taking this liaison quite as seriously as his future partner. The voices of these two leading players intertwine so well. In the Evening is Falling duet they meld together so perfectly to make one of those opera going memorable moments, as does the clarity of voice and the expression of emotion along with the subtle underlining of the music as Roocroft so perfectly embraces her One Fine day aria. The music, the drama, the dynamic talent of the principal players all conspire to deeply embrace and uplift us. Butterfly is a big opera, goes on a long time and in places indulges itself but all this is easily forgiven as a small price to pay for the many moments of theatrical excellence that this production provides. Earlier in the evening, on the foyer stage the WNO introduced Songlines, a project in which young teenagers are introduced to the opera to explore its themes and characters and respond with a series of delightful songs. Similar programmes are being worked on and will be presented on the first night of Khovanshchina, 17 Feb. and Carmen, 25 Feb, both starting at 5.45pm. |
Reviewed by: Michael Keligan |
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