This bloodthirsty melodrama from Donizetti – a composer at the height of his considerable powers – was first staged in Naples in 1835. This version, produced by Barefoot Opera for the Grimeborn Festival at the Arcola Theatre, is ingeniously scaled down for the limited space. Seven singers and four instrumentalists, joined by members of Hackney Voices for added weight in the opening scene, bring the opera vividly to life. With minimal scenery, unusual instrumentation, and a slow start, Barefoot nonetheless carry the gory drama to a powerful climax thanks to some marvellous solo singing.
The story is classic operatic fare. Lucia Ashton has found love with Edgardo, sworn enemy of her brother Enrico and a member of the rival Ravenswood family. Lucia asks Edgardo to keep their betrothal secret, and he departs abroad. In his absence, Enrico arranges for her to marry Arturo Bucklaw, whose wealth will rescue the Ashton fortunes. Persuaded that Edgardo has abandoned her, she consents reluctantly. But on her wedding day Edgardo returns and curses her for her supposed betrayal. Driven to despair and madness, Lucia murders her bridegroom. In the end, both she and Edgardo die.
This heady mix of passion, deceit and despair – with hints of the supernatural – is elevated by some of Donizetti’s most persuasive music. Chief among these is the famous mad scene, Oh giusto cielo, which, in the right hands, can bring the house down. Here, the Turkish soprano Beren Fidan rose magnificently to the challenge. Tentative at first, by the Act 3 denouement she was in full command, dispatching the coloratura with consummate control and gleaming tone. She rightly received an ovation. Opposite her, Jack Dolan’s Edgardo was every bit her equal in the final act. This tenor role calls for finesse rather than vocal fireworks, and in his death-scene cavatinas Dolan sang with refinement and beauty.
Another standout was baritone Philip Smith as Enrico, Lucia’s feckless but brutal brother. Villains often get the best music, and so it seemed until the third act, when Lucia and Edgardo seized their moments of glory. Eamonn Walsh, as the doomed Arturo, was written as something of a cipher, yet he sang with elegance and feeling. Solid support came from the remaining cast and from Hackney Voices – Barefoot Opera’s practice is to incorporate local choirs wherever they tour.
The reduction of Donizetti’s sumptuous orchestral score to piano, bass, saxophone and accordion is no small feat, and was made trickier by the players occasionally joining the onstage action. Yet under Laurence Panter’s musical direction – he also played piano and took a singing role – the performance held together. The few jarring timbres that arose from the unusual instrumental mix were never overly distracting.
Director Rosie Kat made striking use of the compact stage. With little more than a circular platform and a flexible neon tube (suggesting at various times an umbilical cord, intestines, or a baby), she created images that lingered in the mind, even if occasionally puzzling. At one moment it even seemed that Arturo was marrying Enrico rather than Lucia.
Yet whatever the oddities, the sublime singing of Fidan and Dolan in the final act swept aside reservations. Small companies like Barefoot Opera play a vital role, offering audiences the chance to experience great music sung with such commitment in accessible venues. This was a real achievement for Barefoot Opera – and for Grimeborn.
Composer: Gaetano Donizetti
Libretto: Salvadore Cammaranno
Conductor: Laurence Panter
Director: Rosie Kat
Performers: Beren Fidan, Jack Dolan, Philip Smith, Eamonn Walsh
Running time: 2 hours 30 Minutes
Dates: Until 4 October (various venues)
Photo credit: Matthew Johnson