Porgy and Bess (Birmingham)

Cape Town Opera bring Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess to the Birmingham Hippodrome in an elegant, lavish and unusual style that fits the story in an unconventional fashion.

Set out to ‘reflect a true sense of the South African people’, the opera is set in the township’s of the country. In an odd way the story fits. Poverty, racism and class difference; present in Porgy and Bess and evident in South Africa – what a fantastic way of thinking to implement the story over the classic opera.

Xolela Sixaba takes on Porgy, a fascinating character whose vulnerability is played to a perfect degree by Sixaba. His low, bass baritone vocals are warm and deep in a style that suits the somewhat misunderstood Porgy and outlines the substance of the piece perfectly.

Bess, a pivotal character that practically defines the life of Porgy is played by Tsakane Valentine Maswanganyi. Her vocals are strong and powerful, yet at times slip from operatic and classical to more commercial and musical theatre. Not necessarily a problem for everyone, but when watching an opera it is surely an important factor.

Whilst wholly performed in English, diction and pronunciation are sometimes difficult to comprehend with the English surtitles helping out at times immensely. The complicated story has been drastically cut down by Cape Town Opera , and , running just under three hours seems somewhat dragged out and at times, slightly dull.

The orchestra, conducted by Albert Horne, were incredible. In association with Welsh National Opera, the first five or six rows of the stalls were removed to accommodate the gigantic orchestra. At times the sounds coming from the pit were like something I’d never heard before, a truly talented group of musicians that played to precision and accuracy throughout the show.

The night was an amazing opportunity to see such a wonderful and talented group of performers, all from Africa’s largest performing arts company Cape Town Opera. Whilst in parts the opera seemed slow, not every show can be fast paced and with all elements of a traditional opera present, an enjoyable performance overall.

Porgy and Bess plays the London Coliseum from 11 – 21 July.