THE THREEPENNY OPERA. To 31 May.

Tour

THE THREEPENNY OPERA
by Bertolt Brecht, music by Kurt Weill

The Opera Group, Richmond to 25 May 2002 then tour.
Runs 2hr 20min One interval
Review Emma Dunford 23 May at Richmond Theatre

Provocative and punchy, The Opera Group’s take on Brecht and Weill’s impelling pastiche is not for the faint hearted.When Brecht made John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera his own he dispelled the contemporary conception of linear plot progression. More concerned with expressing a regard (or disregard) for society, his pastiche took on an abstract and episodic form.

Because of this nonconformity, a cast that can maintain its audience’s attention for the entirety of a Brechtian play deserves a huge amount of credit. The Threepenny Opera has difficult scene changes and the dialogue and songs are dissonant, but The Opera Group tackles these obstacles with ease. John Fulljames’s stage direction has shrewdly managed to turn what has the potential to be an uncomfortable play into a truly comfortable production.

As with Brecht’s parody of life, Weill’s parody of orthodox opera is challenging. But the company seems at their most comfortable when tackling the score. Their voices are superb, especially the women whose resonant and raunchy vibratos are not only captivating but exhibit the attitude and pathos reflected in their individual roles. Particular credit to Polly, Jenny and Mr Peachum who sung and delivered dialogue with impressive conviction.

Unfortunately, some of the acting did not deliver quite as convincingly as the singing. The show demands punch and attitude, a kind of arrogance often lost amongst trite dialogue. Surprisingly this was most evident in the performance of the notorious villain Mac the Knife, who needed to be more aggressive and ‘geezerish’ in temper - think Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Hal Cazalet is an enthusiastic actor whose wonderfully operatic voice just needed to be a little rougher around the edges to give his character the sinister edge it so desperately needed.

In his opening Peachum deliberates over life’s constant search for novelty. The Opera Group’s take on Brecht’s 'opera' was certainly novel and, though not without lapses, did reflect his cynical concept on life in what was an absorbing, piquant and thoroughly enjoyable performance.

Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum: Julian Forsyth
Mrs Peachum: Sue Fay
Macheath: Hal Cazalet
Polly Peachum: Helen French
Matthew: Adrian Metcalfe
Jake: Graham Dalton
Bob/Filch: Alex Maclaren
Walt/Smith: Martin Bendel
Ned: Ian Watson
Tiger Brown: Walter Van Dyk
Jenny: Charlotte Page
Lucy Brown: Susan Harriet

Director: John Fulljames
Designer: Alex Lowde
Lighting: Oliver Fenwick
Musical Director: Stuart Stratford
Choreographer: Michael Rolnick

Tour:
26 May Brighton Theatre Royal
28 May Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield
30 May The Anvil, Basingstoke
31 May Salisbury Playhouse, Salisbury Festival

2002-05-26 08:28:29