A lovely sunny, warm and less windy day at last! We took the opportunity of going on our first walk - along the old railway track through the Wye Valley in Chee Dale - a real good example of Victorian ingenuity as the track clings to the steep valley sides with several superbly constructed tunnels several of which we are still able to walk through - although some are now closed to the public. Forgot the camera for the walk today so no photos -sorry ;-)
In the evening we went to the Opera House.
Abbots Langley G&S Society - The Gondoliers.
This is the sixth time the company have attended the International G&S Festival in Buxton - tonight they presented The Gondoliers. The overture was played well with a brisk pace and some lovely delicate movements. The tabs were lifted to reveal the classic set but what a colourful group of Contadine and Gondoliers. They were all well costumed with good wigs. How well they moved - it is a credit to the director how well schooled they were. Every action was delightfully in time with every single member doing the actions in unison. The singing was very good, although the individual soloists from the Contadine were not very strong. It was the same with the men - as a group they were very good but the two soloists let them down - however Antonio was excellent and his song "For the merriest fellows are we" was great - the dancing from all was excellent.
The entrance of the two principal gondoliers, Marco and Giuseppe was well done, although the rope pulling the Gondola was very obvious. How the girls swooned over them - especially one of them who fainted every time she came up to Giuseppe - very funny. Both these actors were very good - Marco had an excellent tenor voice. Giuseppe was a real smoothie - how the girls loved him - they sang really well in their duet "We're called Gondolieri"
The choosing of the brides was well done - if a little cheeky at times - eventually Tessa and Gianetta are "chosen" - The Gondoliers were given a scolding when then suggested changing! All left the stage - this in itself was a miracle as there were so many in this company - again a credit to their practicing.
The Duke and his party arrived - the Duke was very good - he had a clear voice and good diction - the Duchess was quiet and more difficult to hear. Casilda was a little nervous and this was reflected in her voice. Luiz was good and I could hear every word - in this first song he was actually playing the snare drum - and very well he did it! They had great fun with the dialogue as the Duke bemoaned the fact that no special arrangements had been made for his visit. Casilda was told that she had been married to the future King of Barataria - which shocked her. The Duke then gave us his song "In enterprise of martial kind" He sang well and moved about with confidence with flamboyant gestures. Luiz and Casilda expressed their love for each other once the Duke and Duchess had left - however, once Casilda realised the she was married she had to spurn Luiz's advances.
When Don Alhambra came on he proved to be a real haughty character with a very lecherous nature. He had an excellent singing voice and was a superb actor - how well he sang his song "I stole the Prince". The quintet "Try we life-long, we can never" was really well sung and the voices blended well.
The newly weds arrived on stage and Tessa sang a confident "When a merry maiden marries" She had a good voice and excellent diction. They had good fun as Don Alhambra asked them what they were celebrating - he was shocked to find that they had just married and explained that one of them was the King of Barataria. Gianetta tried to persuade him to let the girls go with the men to Barataria but to no avail. She had a nice voice and good diction as she sang "Kind Sir,....." They had great fun as they pondered the question as to which would be queen in the well performed quartet "Then on of us...." Really good actions and exciting movement as all four put full energies into the song.
The Gondoliers explained to their peers that they were to be king - together - as one individual - but that they were all welcome to go to Barataria with them. Everyone wanted to go - the boat arrived to take them over (it was the gondola subtly disguised with a cloth to represent a sail ) Gianetta and Tessa sang a moving "Now Marco dear..." and then act one closed as they all prepared to go to Barataria.
Act two opened to show the Pavilion in the court of Barataria - this was a bit of a drab set but the men brightened it up - they were in superb costumes - now all courtiers - but the wigs on some of them left much to be desired. Marco and Giuseppe were looking after all the courtiers but objected to only getting one meal - they all had good fun as the discussed this problem. Giuseppe then sang a good rendition of "Rising early in the morning" - this was accompanied with excellent actions. Marco responded with an excellent "Take a pair of sparkling eyes" Here he really showed off his excellent voice - some of the higher note were so pure and so strong that it made your heart soar. This actor has a future if only he can get his acting skills up to those of his voice.
The girls arrive - full of excitement - they explain how they have decided to sail over - they are rewarded by the promise of a dance and a banquet. The company sing a brisk and beautifully choreographed "Dance a cachucha..."
Don Alhambra has good fun as he admonishes Marco and Giuseppe for allowing the various classes to mix so much - to prove his point he sings a lovely "There lived a king" He has a lovely deep voice which really came into it's own in this song.The girls return and discover that neither of them will be a queen. The quartet "In a contemplative fashion" proved to be one of my highlights of the production - The four soloists were lined up across the stage - each had a vertical spotlight shining down on them and the sang it so well.
The Ducal party arrived on stage and the Duchess sang her solo "On the day that I was married..." I have mentioned previously that she was very quiet and it was the same again here - the MD had very little sympathy and kept the volume from the orchestra too high. They had good fun with "Small titles and orders" also with Marco and Giuseppe as he tried to show them how to deal with his courtiers in "I am a courtier, grave and serious"
Eventually Inez explained that Luiz was the real king - he was crowned and the company exploded into a colourful finale.
The adjudicator delivers her opinions on the production - Gillian Humphreys
I really enjoyed this production
We did not go to the club.
