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One of the UK’s most exciting and original chamber opera companies. |
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Since its inception in 1993 Opera a la Carte has established itself as one of the UK’s most exciting and original chamber opera companies.
Its founder and director, Nicholas Heath, has used his extensive musical and performing experience as well as his knowledge of the established talents and rising stars at Covent Garden and ENO to create a flexible company equally at home with cabaret and full scale opera seria.
Always entirely faithful to the spirit of opera and each work, the musical and artistic directors distil the score working closely with the singers and other instrumentalists; an accordion for the tango Barber of Seville which was awarded 5 star critic choice in the Times, wind quartet for Mozart, string quartet for Verdi, and organ and percussion for Puccini. Equally at home performing at corporate, public or intimate private occasions, the company prides itself on its personal style, flexibility and ability to appeal to an ever expanding audience. Their flair and enthusiasm has provoked great critical acclaim … ‘Dare we say, better than Glyndebourne…’
Enjoy an enthralling romp towards hell!
Licentiousness, murder and revenge – elements guaranteed to produce a story that is irresistible. Add Mozart to the equation and it cannot fail.
This year, the Bermuda Festival has brought the Opera a la Carte Company from the Uk to the City Hall Theatre to perform the tale of the wicked seducer Don Giovanni, and last night’s audience was an enormously appreciative one. With good reason – the stage set was minimal, but with high, weather-softened walls, thick climbing vines and citrus trees it was a beautiful representation of an Italian scene, while the costumes were typically 18th century and the opera itself an entertaining romp through this “drama giocoso,” a serious comedy, as Mozart called it.
Opera a la Carte made extremely full use of the theatre itself – freely entering and exiting through the main doors of the theater, appearing in the Mayor’s box and wandering through the aisles. The musical accompaniment was a lone pianist, which at first I thought would be a disappointment – I would have loved to have heard Mozart’s orchestral score – but in the end it did not detract from the opera at all. In fact pianist Peter Bailey received particularly enthusiastic applause for the enormous job that he undertook, and because he acquitted himself so well.
The story of Don Giovanni is a shocking one even today – a licentious man whose conquests number in the thousands, and who stops at nothing - even murder – to add to that tally.
As the opera opens, we are witnessing the endgame, as it were, of this despicable man’s career. Colin Campbell played the role with all the nonchalance the role requires, and imbued it with a certain charm that makes his successes understandable.
His servant, Leporello – played by Jochem Van Ast, whose fresh and spirited performance was a highlight last evening – tries his best with his incorrigible master, warning the beautiful Donna Elvira of Don Giovanni’s innumerable conquests, and then warning his master about his behaviour and the need to start afresh.
We meet several of Don Giovanni’s love interests as he upends their lives and existing relationships, beginning with Donna Anna, performed by Katri Paukkunen, whom he attempts to seduce in the opening scenes.
Her father attempts to see off Don Giovanni, but is murdered for his efforts. Ms Paukkunen’s pure soprano voice worked well here, as Donna Anna struggled with her anguish and anger over her father’s murder, and insists on revenge.
Donna Elvira, the unfaithful Don Giovanni’s lover, played by Caroline Childe, has in contrast a warm mezzo, which was lovely to hear, and well suited this more romantic role.
As the story progresses, Don Giovanni even stoops to seduce a bride, Zerlina, in the midst of her preparations to marry.
Despite the overlying light and comedic nature of this opera, there’s plenty of food for thought. During the second half, Don Giovanni’s servant struggles with his disapproval of his master’s behaviour and even attempts to leave him. But Leporello succumbs to temptation twice – Don Giovanni pays him to stay on, and then the two swap clothes, allowing Leporello to seduce Donna Elvira while his master goes after her maid.
Thus, the conscience of the piece is guilty of precisely the same behaviour that he himself condemns.
Ultimately Don Giovanni becomes a ghost story, with the return of Donna Anna’s father, who appears as a spectre and ultimately provides Don Giovanni with his reward – a descent into hell.
And so morality wins the day, and the story ends happily.
The audience was enthralled with this production – it was sung in Italian, and a complex story line made it a challenge but Opera a la Carte met it with aplomb, (assisted, I am sure, by the superb synopsis in the programme) and gave a wonderfully entertaining and memorable performance.
Rebecca Zull
2005
Irish Times
“Wayward Don wins the hearts of music lovers”
A colourful assembly gathered in a gracious garden to witness justice being done. There were gentlemen in powdered wigs, ladies in dramatic gowns and masks, some comic, a couple sinister, others rather beautiful. And this was only the audience.
Opera a la Carte's lively production of Mozart's Don Giovanni took the stage in Loughcrew Historic Gardens, Oldcastle, Co Meath, at the weekend. The expressive ensemble cast, collectively celebrating in fine voice, played the subversive masterpiece to maximum comic effect with a physical flair just short of the Marx Brothers in full flight. No one ended up feeling sorry for the wayward Don, and as for the wronged Donna Elvira, sung majestically by US soprano Katie Van Kooten, she was angry with her faithless lover but she would survive.
Even the capricious July weather decided to co-operate on Saturday evening as the sunlight drifted gently through the semi-transparent roof of the large tent. The opera-goers had arrived, many for the fifth year, with sufficient amounts of picnic supplies to sustain a minor military campaign.
In the age of convenience eating, stylish eating and impressive attention to detail triumphed as good glassware, linen and some of the family silver, all elegantly packed into classic picnic baskets, emerged among the ancient Yew trees. Some parties favoured tables; others opted for an understated rug neatly spread upon the grass. Old world manners returned in force to a part of Co Meath. No one was overly concerned about the middle-aged man, who with the petulance of a teenager dragged away from the television, demanded of his female companion: "Am I going to be bored out of my mind? I don't know any Latin."
Smiling the smile of a practising psychiatrist, she whispered "Relax. It's in Italian." His sulk became darker. "I don't speak Italian."
Long before the audience began to fill the tent, the walls of which had been vividly decorated with Michael Dillon's thematic paintings, there was drama: a woman spilt wine on her gown. Her friends rushed to assist her. It was as if a death was in the making. But the dress - and the lady's evening - as well as that of her friends - was saved. Meanwhile, Don Giovanni lurked off stage like a giant long-haired teenager, waiting for the fun to begin.
True the Don, played by Michael Dewis, proved a likeable cad, a bit too much of a lad on the rampage to be taken seriously as a ruthless serial seducer. With a disarming grin to match his attractive baritone, this was an absent-minded, engaging Giovanni inspired by Johnny Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean.
More good natured than defiant, he had a good time and was well supported by his servant, Jochem Van Ast's wonderful, suitably rebellious Leporello. The fact that Don Giovanni actually managed to kill the old Commendatore was quite an achievement. As Katri Paukkunen's ethereal Donna Anna, intent on avenging her father and her own violation, sang movingly of her dilemma, members of the audience watched a stoic man endure as the feathers of his companion's hat repeatedly obscured his view of the on-stage action.
Once described by E.T.A. Hoffmann as "the opera of all operas" and a long established favourite of sing along status, Don Giovanni which was first performed in 1787, remains fresh. Opera a la Carte's artistic director, Nicholas Heath was certainly striving for the light, earthy comedy of Amadeus. The music as always carried the evening, five musicians led by Rosalind Jones on piano deputised for the usual orchestra.
Don Giovanni has its share of Mozart's greatest hits, especially among the duets. As for the wrongs, well this time Don Giovanni got off lightly. Instead of eternal damnation for his appalling behaviour, he suffered mere humiliation and what promised to be the messy aftermath of a lengthy binge. The delighted audience departed, humming Mozart's tunes. The composer would have approved.
Eileen Battersby
2004
Irish Times
‘Getting Così under canvas’
Opera in a tent? It's one of the attractions of a garden staging of 'Così Fan Tutte' with a Raj theme, along with some promising young singers, writes Arminta Wallace
'I feel," says Nicholas Heath, sipping his coffee and offering a beautific smile, "that there ought to be a lot of sex in this show." What? I mean, sex rears its head in Così Fan Tutte, Mozart's operatic tale of couples behaving badly, but we're not talking upfront and explicit, are we? Stuff to frighten the horses?
Heath, the director of Opera à la Carte's "garden opera" production, which played at Loughcrew, in Co Meath, a fortnight ago and moves to Woodbrook House, near Enniscorthy in Co Wexford, for two performances this weekend, looks shocked. He is, he explains, thinking more of sexual suggestion. Hints and allegations, surreptitious eye contact, that sort of thing.
But, he adds, he has taken the liberty of adding an extra character to the plot. What? Meddling with Mozart? Downgrading Da Ponte's libretto? "Heavens, no. It's a non-speaking role," he explains hastily. "Just a little something to spice things up." "It" turns out to be a hunky actor by the name of Ishwar Mahraj, who shimmies in and out of the action looking good enough to eat; a nice theatrical touch in an opera that once had the reputation of being more than somewhat misogynistic.
It's also a reminder that although this may be Così under canvas - and Heath is aware of the many heady attractions of garden opera: the picnic on the lawn at the interval, the big-house backdrop, the posh frocks, the champagne - it's vital to get the artistic part right if the production is to succeed.
First, and most importantly, comes the casting. As a full-time member of the chorus at the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in London, Heath is well placed to get hold of the most promising up-and-coming young actor-singers. For this production they are Gudrún Ólafsdóttir, an Icelandic mezzo who has just won the Kathleen Ferrier Song Prize at the Wigmore Hall, and Jochem Van Ast, a Dutch baritone who has already sung all sorts, from Rossini's Figaro at Loughcrew last year to, according to his biography, the role of a bearded transvestite.
Next comes the staging. After a decade of putting on outdoor opera, Heath has developed an instinct for what works best in a sylvan setting.
"That first year at Loughcrew we did The Marriage Of Figaro," he says. "It's a marvellous opera to start off with; it's a comedy, and it's all about reconciliation and, of course, it's all in a garden as well. So off we romped. And then I suggested that we might do something darker, so we did Rigoletto. Which, of course, is quite funny up to a point, but then it turns - the whole thing spins - and it gets pretty violent.
"But in this sort of intimate setting the final act was extremely powerful. A lot of people came away going, wow. They were genuinely moved."
Last year came a "tango" Barber Of Seville, the bright and breezy score arranged for clarinet, accordion, bassoon and piano. "The intention is to give people a different feeling every year. But it's about more than just words and music. You have to make it a theatrical experience as well."
Which, on its opening night at Loughcrew, Così Fan Tutte undoubtedly was. Members of the audience who had been a little too liberal with the early-evening champagne must have been startled when they entered the performance marquee to find it rigged up as a boxing ring and the opening scene played as a sparring match between tenor and baritone, dressed in shorts and sleeveless vests.
Heath's setting, a British garrison in India just after the first World War, establishes a sunny, languorous mood that cleverly links to the outdoor-opera vibe. "I don't modernise things for modernising's sake," he says, "but there were uprisings in the early 1920s in India, so the idea that the boys were stationed there and could just be called up at any minute made sense."
He is acutely conscious that the opera demands tightly choreographed ensemble playing. "When you get a team of people together to put on a production you never quite know what the chemistry is going to be. There's a big difference between how people present themselves at audition and how they are in real life. You know, they look beautiful for the audition, and then they turn up for rehearsal in a smelly T-shirt.
"But this group has been on a real journey through this opera. We've had some pretty hot discussions about how other people view Così and how I view it - and I think it has become an education for all of us."
For James Edwards, whose snazzy shades suggest he has never been within a million miles of a smelly T-shirt, it has certainly proved so. This outing as Ferrando is his first Mozart role as a tenor, having moved up from the baritone register just two years ago.
"It's pretty unforgiving, this music," he says ruefully. "Bohème and La Traviata you can shout your way through, but you can't do any shouting in this. You've got to sing it. I usually spend my summers doing session work, which pays a lot more, but my teacher thought this would do me good. We'll see."
In September Edwards is due to begin a two-year stint as a Vilar artist at Covent Garden, which means he'll be paid a full-time salary to sing small roles and understudy big ones, with free coaching from top visiting artists such as Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti thrown into the mix.
"Meanwhile I'm having a wonderful time here," he says. "I've eaten tons and tons of food, and I'm staying in a castle in a four-poster bed."
Diane Atherton, a soprano, is a regular with Opera à la Carte. "I did Susanna in The Marriage Of Figaro and then Gilda in Rigoletto, and then last year I had a baby," she says. She, too, will be moving on in the autumn: she is planning to emigrate to the US with her conductor husband, who has just been appointed artistic director at Washington Cathedral.
"Garden opera is difficult," she says, "because it's opera in the round - and the audience is right there, a foot away from you. But as a young singer you have to learn to be flexible. Otherwise, quite frankly, you'd never get any work. Very few singers walk straight from college into the main theatres."
While we're talking a young man in a baseball cap - stage manager Benjamin O'Grady - drifts in and out, bearing strange offerings. A bucket of water that, to everybody's bafflement, has sprung a leak. A handful of trainer laces. Heath regards the latter somewhat dubiously. "Hmm. Bit pink, aren't they?" O'Grady, who is studying stage matters in Stratford-upon-Avon, no less, vanishes again. It is, after all, opera outdoors - and you have to be ready for anything.
"Ah, yes," says Heath with another of his unflappable smiles. "The generator failed last year. The boys had just climbed into Rosina's apartment after the thunderstorm scene. I was on the lighting board, and during the thunderstorm the lights were flickering, and I was looking at it and thinking, what's going on here? What have I touched?
"And then the whole thing just suddenly went ummmmm and everything went dark except the oil lamp which the boys had on stage. The band, naturally, stopped - although the pianist, a répétiteur from Covent Garden who knew the score inside out anyhow, kept on playing.
"And Jochem just looked over towards the piano and whistled a little bit, and then started singing Some Enchanted Evening. It brought the house down."
Aminta Wallace
2003
Irish Examiner
‘Tailor made opera brings sweet notes to a garden’
Arranging a full operatic performance can be daunting at any time with its demands of cast, clothing, sets and crew. Add to that the vagaries of travelling the world and it could be a task too difficult to contemplate, let alone handle! Nicholas Heath remains calm, however, as he plans the forthcoming visit of Opera a la Carte to Ireland in July.
Nicholas Heath set up this touring opera company in 1993 and, nine years later, can boast an impressive a la carte menu of personalised operatic programmes. It all depends on the venue, the occasion and the duration of the expected performance. Word of mouth keeps Opera a la Carte busy and a flexible approach is essential in order to tailor the performance to individual needs. There's cabarets involving up to seven singers and a piano, with offerings from La Boheme and Tales of Hoffman, after-dinner singers concentrating on love duets, favourite arias and serenades, or the full Grand Opera performances of works by Verdi, Donizetti or Mozart.
Nicholas, who is both a performer and the artistic director of this group, arranged a Garden Opera of The Marriage of Figaro at Loughcrew Gardens, Co Meath, last year. It was a giant leap of faith for both Opera a la Carte and the owners, Emily and Charles Naper, who had only recently opened their gardens to the public.
"Apart from a little contretemps with the lighting backstage and a couple of cases of hayfever, there were no major problems," Nicholas relates. "We're all thrilled to be invited back by Charlie and Emily."
"I made my opera debut as Don Ottavio with the British Youth Opera in 1987, then I joined the Kent Opera for a while and moved on to the Pavilion Opera." It was in 1993 that he joined the Royal Opera and it is from this coterie of singers that members of Opera a la Carte hail. "I found that there was a growing need for informal evenings of opera of a high professional standard. We're intent on developing and improving our presentation at the venues where we perform," Nicholas explains. |
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