Past Production Reviews
4Sams takes the opportunity to re-write the libretto when necessary, not only making his words fit the music but even achieving the near impossible feat of making it all sound completely natural as though it were all written in English in the first place.
Many directors today choose to set operas in the 1950s or ’60s, and the reasons why are not hard to find. The period is still recent enough to retain a certain air of familiarity, which can help make the action relatable. At the same time, it is still ‘historical’ enough to maintain many of the traditional values and hierarchies on which the works originally played. This is not, however, the only reason why Phelim McDermott’s production, a joint venture between English National Opera and The Metropolitan Opera that first appeared at the London Coliseum in 2014, sets the drama on Coney Island in the 1950s. To McDermott, amusement parks take us into a different realm with their magic, exuberance and allure, and it is this type of territory that the quartet of lovers enter as they all go on their extraordinary adventure.
Bliss deftly wielded his silky tenor through Ferrando’s more touching scenes; faced with Fiordiligi’s initial refusal and Dorabella’s unfaithfulness, his cavatina “Tradito, schernito,” rang with a fine, crestfallen timbre. This seeming defeat tinged his later duet with Car, “Fra gli amplessi,” with a desperate passion that was hard to resist, as heard from the beckoning caress he placed on the phrase “In me alone you’ll find husband, lover, and more if you wish.”
