ENO - Rodelinda review

Another week, another opera at ENO, but this time it was a more enjoyable 'whole' affair than last week's Rigoletto!

Richard Jones' new production of Handel's Rodelinda was a much better production all round, although there were still elements that jarred or were unintentionally comic.   Some other unplanned (I hope!) humour came from the new translaton by Amanda Holden.  It is sometimes hard to stop yourself laughing when someone sings that they are bleeding after being stabbed several times!

Updated to the 1940s the plot was still easy enough to follow (for Handel!), after all, there are only seven characters and one of them - Flavio (the son Rodelinda and Bertarido) - doesn't even sing!

The orchestra - under Christian Curnyn - was in great form, but it was the cast that topped the evening.  Richard Burkhard as Garibalda was suitably evil and conniving.  Eduige, sung by Susan Bickley, was a torment of conflicted emotions.  Countertenor Christopher Ainslie had a difficult task being one of two countertenors in the opera, however, he sang and acted well.  John Mark Ainsley as Grimoaldo was well cast as the evil usurper.  Iestyn Davies as the usurped Bertarido sang beautifully (as we would expect) and his duet at the separation with Rodelinda - Rebecca Evans - was one of the highlights of the evening.  Evans was in fine voice throughout and got a huge round of applause at curtain down.

Although there was a great deal of scenery and 'business' on stage, it didn't, for a change, interfere with the singing.  This time ENO wasn't scared of letting a small cast get on with it!

<<http://www.eno.org/rodelinda>>