Double Bill
of Comic Opera a Winner
The double bill Bridge
to Somewhere by John Drummond
& Nigel Eastgate and The
Telephone by Gian-Carlo Menotti
was presented on Saturday November 7 to a full house at the Bannockburn
Hall. This was a rare treat as Opera
Otago, the production arm of the Dunedin Opera Company, had not toured to
First up was The
Telephone and as in most of Menotti’s chamber operas the marriage of
words and music is pure genius. Emma
Fraser (soprano) and John Kiernan-Sear (Baritone), who played Lucy and Ben,
sustained good characterisations and sang with great panache bringing out every
nuance of the humour. The transposition of the old style telephones to the
modern cell-phones was a clever move and made it all the more amusing.
In Bridge to Somewhere
composed by John Drummond with text
by Nigel Eastgate, Emma Fraser
(Rosemary) and John Kiernan-Sear (Harold) were joined by Claire Barton
(mezzo-soprano) who played the role of Angela with humour and good timing. The singers interacted with each other very
well achieving an excellent blend and balance when singing the concerted items.
This comic opera was highly successful, drawing much laughter from the audience
especially when the singers dropped character to deliver advertisements.
As if this wasn’t enough, the
audience was treated to an interlude of arias and duets and it is to Opera
Otago’s credit that well-known and well-loved pieces from the operatic
repertoire were chosen. Organisations who present these popular selections
gauge well the taste of the public. It
was in this segment of the programme that the voices of these three
accomplished singers were heard in their full beauty and power. Every item was
a treat but the gems were Non piu andrai from The
Marriage of Figaro (Mozart) given a spirited rendition by John
Kiernan-Sear and the famous barcarole, from The
Tales of Hoffmann (Offenbach) sung with perfect blend and balance by
Emma Fraser and Claire Barton.
Throughout the evening, the accompanist, Julia Horsnell showed great
musical dexterity and was an invaluable support.
Altogether, this was a very
satisfying programme with just one reservation.
I fully understand the difficulties and logistics of transporting and
rigging stage lighting on tour, which could also necessitate touring with at
least one extra member of personnel but good stage lighting enhances the
presentation and creates the magic of theatre.
It would be most gratifying if this aspect could be added in the
future. That aside, it was a memorable
occasion with the audience showing full appreciation of a brilliant evening of
song and laughter.
EMEC