Opera Scotland

Midsummer Night's Dream 1972Scottish Opera

Read more about the opera Midsummer Night's Dream

Scottish Opera continued its policy of producing Britten’s chamber operas. Toby Robertson’s work was familiar in Scotland from the many years spent as director of the Prospect Theatre Company which had produced notable stagings of classic drama on tour and at the Edinburgh Festival (including Ian McKellen in Richard II and Edward II, Timothy West as Lear, John Neville in Much Ado).

This was the first of three operas he would direct with Scottish Opera. The actor Tim Curry was a regular at the Glasgow Citizens' Theatre. The leading Sadler's Wells mezzo Joyce Blackham joined the cast in October for what would be her only appearances with the company.

John Angelo Messana spent several seasons in Britain, mainly singing in baroque opera, though he also worked at the National Theatre (in Peter Hall's staging of Ben Jonson's Volpone, which also featured Paul Scofield, Ben Kingsley, Sir John Gielgud and Warren Clark).  He returned for several of the later performances.

James Bowman was chosen by Brtten to sing Oberon with the English Opera Group, and he would continue to sing it for many years.   Bll McCue never missed a performance as Bottom, really making the character his own, in spite of having several Flutes to play off.

Roderick Brydon by this time had the composer in his blood, and everything sounded completely natural.  Long after this staging was retired he came to the Edinburgh Festival in charge of an excellent Australan production.