The Merry Widow

This was a sumptuous production. The sets were striking, the costumes magnificent, particularly the Pontevedrian ones, the direction effective and ensemble singing tight. There were nine young dancers, three of them male, who added immeasurably to the show. The orchestra was excellent.

When directing The Merry Widow myself I struggled to find a workable translation. Director Robert Ray has, with permission, made changes which made for an effective show, including substituting a finale from another Lehar operetta. It worked very well.

I have encountered G&S regular Ron Pidcock on many occasions, and his bumbling performance as the ambassador was one of his best. As his PA Njegus, Andrew McGrail was also very funny, and his strong voice was appreciated in his solo.

I am familiar with the work of dramatic tenor, James Penn, as Camille, and look forward to seeing where his voice takes him. He still struggles to control his impressive instrument, but managed some tender moments in the Pavilion duet with Josephine Grech. His acting is still a little stiff and therefore not completely convincing as the smooth charmer, which made it difficult for Josephine, who sang beautifully.

Jonathan Rumsam and Torquil Syme were very funny as the Frenchmen and other smaller roles were all well taken.

One often hears about auditions for amateur shows where some roles have been pre-cast, but I have not encountered a situation where the two leading characters were not included in the list of roles for which singers could audition. This raised my expectations, but these were not completely met.

Robert Latham was everything one could want from a Danilo. His voice was clear and strong, he looked good, and his expressive face conveyed every emotion of the confused former lover. As the Widow, Susannah Gibley was strong and worked well with Robert and they made a convincing couple.

Unfortunately she was vocally miscast. The role of the Widow sits low for a soprano and Susannah could not be heard in the lower register, particularly when the ensemble were singing, and in the upper register her voice lacked the beauty the role ideally required.

However, this was a minor issue in what was a very successful production.  

Graham Ford