Welsh National Opera: Gaetano Donizetti’s Robert Devereux
****
Wales Millennium Centre, Thu 28 Feb
Last night the Welsh National Opera’s production of Gaetano Donizetti’s Roberto Devereux brought a packed Millennium Centre to its feet in almost unanimous ovation, and to some extent rightly so.
Donizetti’s intensely dramatic 1837 masterpiece was given fresh breath of air thanks to the WNO’s talented orchestra, conducted by maestro Carlo Rizzi, and the stellar performances of the cast. The highlight was an electric turn from Joyce El-Khoury, whose Queen Elizabeth stole every scene she was in, bringing the house down with a rendition of Vivi that set bones tingling during the gripping finale.
It was not only the finale that gripped. Those who have not seen the production before should be warned to expect a tense and occasionally tough ride. Donizetti called Roberto Devereux ‘the opera of emotions’ and that it is, the piece building and building to a near-unbearable emotional crescendo as we watch Elizabeth agonise over Roberto’s actions, the torment of her circumstances given extra weight by the treachery involved.
If there is criticism to be had with the show then it lies not with the performances, and certainly not with the material. This is one of Donizetti’s great achievements, the best of his ‘Tudor Queens’ trilogy. However, since the original inception of this revived production doubts have lingered over some of its aesthetic aspects. The Vivienne Westwood-inspired costumes are quirky in a passable way, but although the monochrome black staging is striking at first, it becomes rather drab over the course of two hours. More variation between light and shade would help to temper the bleakness of the show’s tone.There is also a bizarre spider-like contraption brought out in the second act which looks like a rightly forgotten prop from Mad Max. When Queen Elizabeth emerges, enthroned on this thing, it looks like a Lady Gaga video gone wrong. It feels out of place; the spider’s legs are not in-step with the rest of the opera.
But this is a minor quibble, one that should not stop you from hunting for tickets for future performances.
words Joshua Rees
photo Bill Cooper
Roberto Devereux is at the WMC on Sat 2 Mar, and then goes on tour across the UK. Tickets and info here