Not long before his death, Colin Graham, long resident in the USA, complained that opera companies in Britain thought he was old-fashioned. His connection with Aldeburgh went back to his years spent working with Britten on his later operas, and it was the ideal environment for him to mount his last staging in this country, working with young singers. It was taken into the ETO repertory the following spring and was brought on the company's second visit to the Perth Festival - and very good it was too.
The production was neatly rehearsed by Alison Brown - the hive of activity in the Prologue avoided the chaos which might have resulted from working on such a small stage. Richard Farnes conducted the entire opera beautifully, apparently having no difficulty arising from the size of the theatre. Arlene Rolph gave an exciting performance as the Composer, and Carol Smith, Paul McNamara and Eva Kållberg coped confidently with their fiendishly difficult roles. Richard Burkhardt also made a positive impact as Harlequin.
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