Opera Scotland

Romeo and Juliet 1906Moody-Manners Opera Company

Read more about the opera Roméo et Juliette

Gounod's second most famous opera is, unfortunately, despite its familiar storyline, a great deal less well-known than Faust. 

Abbreviated cast details for the Edinburgh performance are from the Scotsman of 12 October (p4).  In reviewing the performance the critic was generally enthusiastic:

'The production of Gounod's beautiful opera of Romeo and Juliet by the Moody-Manners Company last night was received with great applause by a crowded audience.  The romantic theme of Shakespeare's great love tragedy readily lends itself to operatic treatment, and though Romeo and Juliet is not likely ever to have the same popularity as the great Frenchman's other opera of Faust, there is no doubt at all that Gounod put some of his best work into it.

'It is full of haunting melodies and delightful choruses, and the orchestration throughout is steeped in the sensuous atmosphere of the land of sunshine and romance in which the scene is laid.  In the whole range of operatic music there are few more charming love scenes,  where heart beats to heart, than the balcony scene in this opera, or the parting of the two lovers in the fourth act.

'The opera was artistically staged, and under the conductorship of Signor Sapio the work was rendered in a satisfactory manner.  Great praise must be given to the harmonious singing of the chorus,  and particularly to the soft blending of their voices in the more subdued scenes.

'The Romeo of the evening was Mr Joseph O'Mara and the Juliet Madame De Vere.  Both were in good voice, and in the balcony scene especially they infused into their singing and acting the necessary romance.  At the close the curtain rose and fell four times upon these artists amid a scene of much enthusiasm.  Mr Charles Manners gave an impressive and admirable rendering of the part of Friar Lawrence;  Mr Magrath was a dignified Capulet;  and Mr William Dever bore himself gallantly as Mercutio, though he hardly did justice to the Queen Mab song - a difficult number undoubtedly, but into the singing of which an artist of his quality should have put more descriptive power.'

 

The Scottish tour schedule

In 1906 Moody-Manners followed their recently established pattern with two visits to Scotland.  Glasgow hosted the company for two weeks each visit, with Edinburgh only having a single week each time.  The repertoire included further performances of  Eugene Onegin and the reintroduction of a couple of masterpieces from the 1830s in Donizetti's  Lucia di Lammermoor and Meyerbeer's  Les Huguenots.  Nicolai's Merry Wives and Wagner's Flying Dutchman were also comparative novelties.

The schedule for the two visits was as follows:-

Edinburgh w/c 5 March:  Mon Marriage of Figaro;  Tue 6 Carmen;  Wed 7 Eugene Onegin;  Thu 8 Tannhäuser;  Fri 9  Lucia di Lammermoor;  Sat 10 mat Huguenots;  Sat 10 eve Bohemian Girl.

Glasgow w/c 12 March:  Mon Huguenots;  Tue 13 Eugene Onegin;  Wed 14 Trovatore;  Fri 16 Carmen;  Sat 17 mat  Marriage of Figaro;  Sat 17 eve Maritana.

Glasgow w/c 19 March:  Mon Carmen; Tue 20 Flying Dutchman;  Wed 21 Eugene Onegin;  Thu 22 Lucia di Lammermoor;  Fri 23 Faust;  Sat 24 mat Flying Dutchman;  Sat 24 eve Bohemian Girl.

Edinburgh w/c 8 October:  Mon Faust;  Tue 9 Cav & Pag;  Wed 10  Tannhäuser;  Thu 11 Romeo and Juliet;  Fri 12 Merry Wives of Windsor;  Sat 13 mat  Carmen;  Sat 13 eve  Maritana.

Glasgow w/c 15 October:  Mon Carmen;  Tue 16 Faust;  Wed 17  Tannhäuser;  Thu 18 Romeo and Juliet;  Fri 19  Merry Wives of Windsor; Sat 20 Mar Cav & Pag;  Sat 20 eve Bohemian Girl.

Glasgow w/c 22 October: Mon Cav & Pag;  Tue 23 Lohengrin;  Wed 24  Carmen;  Thu 25 Merry Wives of Windsor;  Fri 26 Marriage of Figaro;  Sat 27 mat Faust;  Sat 27 eve Maritana.