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Verdi Giovanna D'Arco Verdi's Joan of Arc (Solera after Schiller) is not quite the Joan we know and love. Three main characters, Joan, her royal lover Carlo VII and her zealot of a father, who denounces her as a witch. She is duly forgiven, returns to the battle-field to triumph and die - well, not actually, her supposed corpse revives to join in a final trio of reconciliation, and there is no hint of stakes for burning. Pre-echoes of Traviata & Rigoletto, for two. Chelsea Opera Group gave their loyal supporters, who filled Queen Elisabeth Hall, a splendid rumbustious evening of opera-in-your-face. Good singing by the lead trio, Claire Rutter a fine deputy for the indisposed Nelly Miricioiu, who'd had to withdraw (she's booked for master classes at the Royal Academy of Music next month) tenor Peter Auty notable for style and stamina, and Ashley Holland as the deplorable father convincing with a good baritone voice, even though intonation occasionally strayed. The large Chelsea Chorus (over sixty singers) sang lustily and the miracle of the evening was the high accomplishment of the entirely non-professional orchestra (except for leader and harpist) which never faltered. Dominic Wheeler inspired a larger than life account of this memorable early Verdi score, sandwiched between two performances of Jonathan Dove's The Little Green Swallow which he is currently conducting at the Guildhall School. Simon Bainbridge (a tenor in the chorus, not the composer) provided a good introduction and synopsis, and the lighting was not too dimmed for those of us who followed the bi-lingual libretto. We all listened to Verdi without the distraction of staging, which might have little to add, and it all made for a most satisfying evening of Italian opera. For a star-studded performance of Giovanna D'Arco, the CD with Montserrat Caballe, Placido Domingo & Sherril Milnes is highly rated; sample Caballe 'at her glittering best' [EMI Classics 63226]. . |
Chelsea Opera Group at Queen Elisabeth Hall, London 5 June 2005