Reviews

Rigoletto (Opera)

Rigoletto, English National Opera at the Coliseum

It seems incredible that Jonathan Miller’s Mafioso staging of Verdi’s Rigoletto is now seventeen years old. This is its ninth revival by ENO and if Friday’s performance failed to pack the emotional punch it should, no doubt later in the run it will.

The reason for this must lie with the conductor, Noel Davies, and the revival director, John la Bouchardiere. Davies’ conducting is too polite. For an opera about a father who arranges the murder of his boss, who is having an affair with his daughter, there needs to be fire in the belly, a coruscating sense of inevitability from the start which grips the audience and leads them on an inevitable journey to the ultimate tragedy. This is lacking at the moment.

The conducting and playing is measured and thoughtful – it needs to have a sense of abandon, and dare one say it, vulgarity in order for the audience to feel part of the melodrama unfolding on stage. I am sure this will come, and the good news is that ENO has everything in place in order for me to be convinced this will happen.

Some of the singers, especially John Hudson making a role debut as the Duke, look as though they need more directorial help than they’ve been given. It’s only in scene II of the first act, with the appearance of Linda Richardson’s quite marvellous Gilda, that things take fire, as Hudson fails to make his mark as the libidinous Duke in the opening scene. He sings well, improving as the evening progresses, especially in Act 2.

From her first appearance Richardson’s Gilda cannot fail to tug at the heart sings. She looks the part as Rigoletto’s daughter, and sings as well as most of the previous incumbents I’ve seen in this production. Mark Richardson is an oily Sparafucile whilst Christine Rice makes a notable debut as Maddalena, his partner in crime, in the last act. In the title role, Keith Latham seems a bit mundane but sings effectively enough.

In short a first night which failed to take fire – the finale should be a tear-jerker – but I’m sure that if you catch later performances everything will have gelled. I have to report that Dr Miller was sitting not far from me in the audience, and looked as though he was enjoying the proceedings. The ingredients are there for a good performance, it just might take time.

Keith McDonnell.