Empire Theatre, Eden Court, 9 February 2009

Turandot

IS IT FAIR to judge Ellen Kent ‘s Amphitheatre Productions by the standards of Scottish Opera? Scottish Opera is subsidised by the taxpayer to the tune of several millions of pounds – but last August, a community group based on Skye, Inner Sound Operatic Society, showed with their staging of The Gondoliers in the OneTouch Theatre that with passion and commitment by all the participants, even a predominantly amateur production on a shoestring budget can be artistically satisfying.

In these post-Pavarotti days, the crux of the opera is that favourite of the football terraces, ‘Nessun Dorma’, so the first requirement for Turandot is a Calaf with a voice which can hold at least a nightlight to the late Luciano’s recordings. Alas, Korean Patrizio Ha’s tenor lacked strength, fullness and projection while his acting was rudimentary to the point of being wooden.

Both lead sopranos had strong enough voices with Irina Sciogoleva’s Liu arguably the better, being fuller in the upper register than Galina Bernaz’ Turandot, and keeping closer to the notes, but neither had the supported fullness of tone necessary for a soloist; Vladimir Dragos (Ping) and Valeriu Cojocaru (Timur) were far more convincing vocally.

Part of the fault may have lain in the orchestra, which sounded brassy, perfect for Up Pompeii, but not Puccini, and often seemed disconnected from what was happening on stage, wandering off in one direction while the singers went in another. The comic potential of Ping, Pang and Pong’s interludes where timing is everything was sadly undercut as a result.

Kent’s promotions focus on lavish staging in traditional style, but Will Bowen’s lovely classical amphitheatre set did not mesh comfortably with the Eastern theme and the incongruous “Terracotta Warriors” dotted about. The costumes were fussy and incoherent, apart from the Princess’s bling-y dresses and headresses, which seemed to have come from another production altogether (at a guess, ‘Aladdin’).

The lighting depended almost entirely on one bank at the front of the stage and the first act took place in a confusingly gloomy twilight. The chorus were strong with true, melodious voices, but were posed statically around the stage. Overall, Turandot was reminiscent of provincial pantomime, but without the laughs.

Amphitheatre Productions undoubtedly have a role to play in taking opera and ballet to places like Basingstoke and Blackpool, and in keeping the Moldovan economy afloat. However, Inverness rejoices in annual visits from Scottish Opera while smaller venues from Stornoway to Strathpeffer get the stripped down but no less satisfying Essential Scottish Opera.

Did anyone from Eden Court actually see this production before booking it, and if so, surely they cannot have seen Scottish Opera’s double bills in November 2008 and 2007? After the magnificence of McVicar’s La Traviata and the superbly seductive The Secret Marriage, it would be far better to give us ten productions by Inner Sound than this Turandot.

© Jennie Macfie, 2009

Links

• Ellen Kent Productions
• Eden Court Theatre