Rush to the Old Market for a delightful evening of gangster-girl mayhem and double-Gay sub-text! Dressed as a rough rent-boy, Mack-the-Knife (Jamie Saunders) snarled well and hit his high notes but his charmless menace was swamped by the quality of Weill’s music… Read more →
The compact stage at the Hawth suited Rossini’s masterpiece comic opera. Rosina (velvet-voiced Kitty Whately) just had to escape from the claustrophobia of her guardian’s house. Natural comic Nicholas Sharratt (Count Almaviva) showed her the way, with his fine tenor voice and… Read more →
Ellen Kent productions told this tragic love story well, although the sets were flimsy and rather cramped. Mimi (most beautifully sung by Elena Dee) was properly the centre of attention, rather than the pranks of the men. The lovers’ separation in Act… Read more →
This feminine ‘Butterfly’ speaks to the heart. The orchestra, coloured with muted brass and oriental percussion, magically conjures up distant Japan but ‘Butterfly’ is never a sugar-sweet romance. Ellen Kent’s beautifully traditional production concentrates on the fragility and peril of young Butterfly… Read more →
A Concert on Remembrance Sunday needs to strike the right note, to be in accord with the day’s heightened emotions and bring people together. A choral requiem will do all this and fill the Dome. The audience were crackling with anticipation. Barry… Read more →
