Passion and Power

On Mon 8 February Queen's Opera Society enjoyed a dark and threatening performance of 'Lucia di Lammermoor', the first of two masterpieces by Donizetti being presented at ENO this season. Set and costumed in the nineteenth century, the dour, grey-clad chorus, stern ancestral portraits and crumbling walls of Ravenswood Castle powerfully evoked the cruelty of patriarchal authority and tradition, a brutal rule of oppression which unhinges and destroys the vulnerable Lucia. Menace and malice (and worse!) were ubiquitous in David Alden's production: the encounter between Enrico and Lucia in Act II was disturbingly staged in a nursery – tied to the bedposts by her brother Enrico, Lucia is a defenceless child-bride, suffocated by her brother's financial ambitions and desperate desire for dominance.

There was some clever design work: a false proscenium, cut into the wall of the set, became the 'stage' for Lucia's set pieces – she chillingly mounted this arena, deliriously embracing the bloodied body of Arturo, at the end of her Mad Scene, watched judgementally, but with growing pity, by the voyeuristic members of the estate.

Soprano Anna Christy was outstanding as the innocent victim of her brother's pride and purpose. Her stunning, stratospheric 'Mad Scene' was musically secure and dramatically convincing. She was matched by tenor Barry Banks, as Edgardo – the Romeo to her Juliet – whose passion and despair was conveyed by his dramatic commitment and vocal warmth.

It was a heart-wrenching and emotional evening, but musical standards were high and despite the theatrical angst and tension, the evening was greeted with admiration by a satisfied audience. The Opera Society will sample the lighter side of Donizetti in March, when we return to ENO for Jonathan Miller's new production of that old rom-com favourite 'L'elisir d'amore'. We will end the year in classical style, when Mozart's 'Idomeneo' will provide a post-examination treat.

Posted: 12 Feb 2010