| Delight, delicious, delectable, |
Welsh National Opera |
| Welsh National Opera- The Magic Flute , Wales Millennium Centre , February 18, 2008 |
An evening of sheer delight, delicious, delectable, a magic production full of humour as well as very fine singing and accomplished playing from the WNO orchestra conducted with care and precision by Gareth Jones. Julian Crouch’s set and the costumes of Kevin Pollard, both Rene Magritte inspired, are a joy to behold. I’m sure like their 1970s Picturesque Madam Butterfly this production will remain in the WNO repertoire for a very long time. An aesthetic tonic that will revive a downcast heart and a dulling intellect with every draft. This revival directed by Benjamin Davis faithfully interprets the atmospheres of Dominic Cooke’s original, even for me making the complex story easier to follow.We’re in a land of curious contradictions right from the start, a room of nine doors but they’re set in a bright blue sky with fine white clouds that seem to float across the ‘walls’. Enter Tamino a handsome prince who is being pursued by a monster lobster. He’s rescued by three lady servants of the Queen of the Night. They are overwhelmed by his masculinity and fantasize over his unconscious body. And so they should, award winning young tenor Russell Thomas is a strong and attractive Tamino with a wonderful clarity of voice that allows us to hear every single word he sings, no mean achievement for an opera singer today, and become totally captivated by his warm and determined character. He revives and is soon joined by Papageno, a be-feathered bird catcher delivering his prey to the enigmatic Queen of the Night. Newport born Neal Davies tells us he is a simple man with simple desires. With his bewildered smile and charming voice he and Tamino quickly build up a great rapport that will see them through the adventures that they have to come. Against a star lit sky and a roar of thunder the Queen of the Night appears in a dark frock with a train of peacock feathers. Laure Meloy may lack a bit of the menace the role requires but her command of the difficult coloratura is near perfect. Her maids equip Tamino with the magic flute and Papageno with magic bells and they go off to rescue princess Pamina from the clutches of the sinister Sarastro and his brotherhood with their colourful bowler hats and umbrellas. We are treated to all the excitement of a Who Done It as at each step obstacles are put in their way. We are on the edge of our seats wondering if they will ever reach their goal even though we do know all comes out happily in the end, though not quite as we might expect. The first time we meet the members of the brotherhood, as they restrain the escaping Pamina, they are all a bit of a mess. Although Howard Kirk does a good and solid job as their lecherous lieutenant Monostatos, and later the full chorus in colourful ritual brotherhood garb, work as ever with excellent voices and the fine discipline that we are accustomed to from this highly valuable artistic resource, pulls everything magnificently back together. David Soar brings his excellent base baritone to the role of Sarastro and though he does not quite capture the personality of this contradictory character he makes a strong contribution to the production. We move through the story with moments of pantomime quickly interspersed with moments of high drama. Tamino is guided on his way to Pamina by three young school boys splendidly sung by three young local school boys. Rebecca Evans is Pamina, her voice is on top form and she is totally convincing in both her trials and her final happiness with Tamino. Oh Blow I’ve given the ending away! I’m sure your enjoyment of this beautiful experience will in no way be dimmed for that. For further performances see: www.wno.org.uk |
Reviewed by: Michael Kelligan |
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