Conductor Alexander Soddy; Fiordiligi, Golda Schultzr; Dorabella, Samantha Hankey; Ferrando, Daniel Behle; Guglielmo, Andrè Schuen; Don Alfonso, Gerald Finley; Despina, Jennifer France. Director, Jan Philipp Gloger; Revival Director, Oliver Platt; Set Designer, Ben Baur; Costume Designer, Karin Jud, Lighting Designer, Bernd Purkrabek
I was not planning to go to this but then decided to campaign in Brighton for the Green Party for the upcoming elections on Saturday 29th. As I was seeing family the next day and staying overnight in London, I bought a £20 standing ticket for this performance. And having looked at the cast, I thought it rather a distinguished one, with three well known female singers, Gerald Finley no less as Don Alfonso, and conducted by Alexander Soddy, a young (in conducting terms – early 40’s) Brit who’s spent his career to date in the old-fashioned way, building up experience with the smaller regional opera houses and orchestras in Germany, and of whom I have read good things (I see he is also conducting Fidelio at ROHCG in the Autumn).
I arrived at the theatre really exhausted after 6 hours of door knocking in Brighton and was feeling a bit concerned about standing for 3 hours, particularly when I’d not eaten that much – I was therefore extremely grateful to the lady who offered me a seat in the stalls circle (one member of her family group had cancelled)!
I saw this production in July 2022 and reviewed it then in this blog. Looking back I see I was more incensed by the eccentricities and waywardness of the production in 2022 than I was this time round. Perhaps it was where I was sitting yesterday – in the Stalls Circle very near the stage, rather than the Amphitheatre, so very much nearer the singers, and I was able to be gripped by the emotions, the facial expressions and movement of the two couples much more closely. Despite all the (for the most part needless) complexity, the basic story remains clear – two couples pushed into swapping partners by a cynical old man and, when the mists clear and the plot is revealed both partners feel uncomfortable with their original lovers, and the opera ends in some mystery and darkness. This time round, I was much more aware that in this production, the two women know from very near the first appearance of their men in disguise who these two are. I was also more aware they know that their male partners have swapped them as lovers. I should also say that, whatever the doubts about what they intend, the appearance of several of the sets are stunning- the tree with the serpent, the 18th century tapestry, the bar, the Brief Encounter rail station. In addition, though liberties I think have been taken, the translation of the text is clear, wry and made people laugh.
Maybe I was more positive about the production because musically this was better than the 2022 performance. Things though didn’t get off to a very good start – Alexander Soddy set a ridiculously fast pace for the overture, as a result of which the timpani fell to pieces in the overture’s closing bars. After that though, things improved. Though without the gracious utterly captivating bounce that I remember when I heard Karl Bohm conduct the work at ROHCG 45 years ago, Soddy let the music expand once the singers appeared on stage, and tight rhythms supported the singers rather than sounding just hard driven. It was still fast, but crispness is sometimes better than sogginess…..
The female singers and Don Alfonso were the best elements among the singers. Golda Schultz has a lovely warm voice – she can, though, also hit the high notes and the vertiginous leaps of ‘Come scoglio’ with ease. Her predominantly slow quiet ‘Per Pieta’ in the second Act was beautifully done. She handled the coloratura well and also the deep notes given to the role didn’t cause any problems for her. She’s not a stage natural but entered fully and energetically in what she was asked to do. Samantha Hankey doesn’t really have the big arias Fiordiligi has to show off in, but acted excellently and her voice was secure and flexible. Jennifer France was remarkably good as Despina – one of the best I’ve seen. She could ping out the top notes, had a great sense of comic timing, exuded manic energy racing around the stage and clearly relished the silly voices she puts on for Dr Mesmer and the Notary. Gerald Finley was another top-class performer. Some Don Alfonso’s quickly go over the top in this role and ham it up, but Finley remained downbeat but quietly malevolent under the guise of wisdom – a truly Satanic presence, but beautifully sung; his contribution to ‘Soave sia il vento’ was outstanding . The two male lovers were less memorable. Guglielmo had a very good voice and a strong stage presence but maybe didn’t make enough of the musical possibilities of the role. I was a bit put off Ferrando by his head notes which went a little too far into falsetto for my comfort.
All in all, the production didn’t affect the reception of the stunning music and the singing, and I really enjoyed the evening – as did the rest of the audience, who whooped and cheered at the end.
John's musical journey 