Friday 6 June 2014

Benvenuto Cellini - English National Opera

As the overture rolled on and the stage (and the front of the stalls) suddenly filled with carnival goers and assorted revellers I was a bit worried I'd stumbled back into the new ENO production of Cosi (sorry, never got round to reviewing this version with its Coney Island setting!).  However, it was merely the start of the Mardi Gras scene of the opening of Benvenuto Cellini by Berlioz.

The auditorium was packed, not - I suspect - by the Berlioz fan club - more to see what director Terry Gilliam would make of the opera.  He's worked with ENO before on The Damnation of Faust.  This gave him much more meat into which to sink his teeth - love, murder, mistaken identity, the Pope, carnival - the list of opportunities seems endless.

Gilliam threw everything at the production and most of it worked well.  Big cast, outrageous costumes, huge masks, huge statue, confetti in the auditorium.  And the audience loved it.  Huge ovation for the cast, orchestra and, as last night was the first night, the production team - including Gilliam himself.

Being unfamiliar with the piece I was happily drawn along by the images on stage, however, the orchestra was on great form.  The cast was strong too.  Michael Spyres gave all in the title role as the philandering sculptor.  Corinne Winters, Teresa, sang well as his love interest.  Nicholas Pallesen as Fieramosca (another sculptor and betrothed to Teresa) and Paula Murrihy as Ascanio (Cellini's business manager) provided formidable support.  It is a long time since I have seen Willard White on stage, so it was good to see him as Pope Clement VII.  The Pope's arrival was completely over the top with an enormous costume partly inspired by the Mikado!  The rest of the cast and chorus, as ever, were enthusiastic.  I felt at times that Pavlo Hunka (Giacomo Balducci, the papal exchequer) lacked a bit of power, but had a good tone nonetheless.

And the revelation of the finished statue of Perseus was a great ending.