Opera Scotland

Mastersingers of Nuremberg 1976Scottish Opera

Read more about the opera Meistersinger von Nürnberg

The company's first production of Meistersinger was received with near-universal delight. The conducting of Alexander Gibson was beautifully controlled and lyrical, and the Scottish Opera Chorus produced glorious sounds throughout a long evening.

The designs by Maria Bjørnson looked solidly traditional (until the final scene opened up. It all seemed wonderfully natural.

Seasoned performances of Sachs,  Beckmesser,  Pogner and David were delivered by veterans Norman Bailey,  Thomas Hemsley,  David Ward and Gregory Dempsey,  all familiar with their roles from performances at Covent Garden or ENO.  Indeed Thomas Hemsley had also sung Beckmesser at Bayreuth.

A delightful feature of David Pountney's staging was the individually characterised minor roles such as young Graham Clark's palsy-ridden pewterer and Norman White's ear-trumpet wielding coppersmith.

Allen Cathcart gave a tireless performance as Walther, and Claire Livingstone, a company member, fitted in well as Magdalene.

Sadly, Elizabeth Harwood had to withdraw from her only attempt at a major Wagner role, but the opportunity was seized by Linda Esther Gray, who delivered a confident performance as Eva, that ensured she would return for the first revival.

 

Scottish Opera's Second Theatre Royal Season  1976/77

Scottish Opera's second Theatre Royal subscription season (1976-77) again consisted of ten varied operas. It opened with a revival of the successful Ebert staging of La bohème. This was followed by Confessions of a Justified Sinner (new in the summer), The Magic Flute, Don Pasquale, Macbeth, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, The Merry Widow, Fidelio, The Rape of Lucretia and Jenůfa.