Music: Henry Purcell
Director/Adapter: Sir David Pountney
Conductor: Harry Bicket
You can always rely on Opera North for challenges and surprises and Masque of Might, presented appropriately in General Director Sir Richard Mantle’s last season, quite possibly surpasses them all. For a start the whole season relies entirely on recycled materials for costume, set and props, but Masque of Might goes further, being described as an eco-entertainment, an extended plea for awareness of climate change.
Left without work by Covid, Sir David Pountney, a lifelong Purcell admirer, set about compiling a masque from his work; it’s a strange fact that, though Purcell has claims to be the greatest ever English composer, much of his work is hidden away in music for plays, semi-operas and ceremonial music. Pountney, having found to his astonishment that Purcell often struck modern attitudes to nature and climate, compiled a work that consists entirely of Purcell’s songs, choruses and dances, 44 in all in just over two hours stage time! He made some changes, but many of the fiercest passages are Purcell’s own – or, rather, his librettists’.
The result is fascinating, not perfect, but highly enjoyable, and – rather surprisingly – makes its ecological case. It’s a masque, not an opera, so the consequential aspect is not especially strong. A very brief summary of the plot takes us from Diktat’s birth, fully grown, in an enormous pram, his dictatorial ways, his killing of enemies and wild boar with equal relish, to the rise of Elena and the downfall of Diktat. The final image, as the world returns to normal, is his pram, stuffed with flowers.
Musically the evening is sublime. Harry Bicket gains beautiful playing from an orchestra with added recorders. harpsichord and theorbos. The chorus, usually operating as a unit, is as distinguished in its movement as in its singing. The seven soloists, most of them changing parts effectively, sing with style and (when needed) passion. As Diktat Callum Thorpe, more like Putin as the plot advances, is focussed and resonant. Anna Dennis, occasionally harsh at the top of her register, copes admirably with the most taxing music, notably the extended Plaint from The Fairy Queen, which ends the first half. Among the others Icelandic debutant Andri Bjorn Robertsson fields a splendidly rich bass baritone.
Only the highest praise will do for the designers – Leslie Travers (set), Marie-Jeanne Lecca (costume) and David Haneke (video) – working miracles with used materials. The backcloths were simply stunning, beginning with the planets in motion, then revealing Diktat in ever-more Putin-esque poses before the grandeur of Versailles opens up. And the designs play a great part in converting us – bleak scenes of destroyed woods.
So far, so amazing! But David Pountney, while concocting a remarkable piece of work and giving a voice to trees, fox and wolf as Diktat’s collapse draws near, never quite solves the problems of disjointedness or the frustrations of being limited to existing numbers. For instance, in the first part the two sycophants in their clown make up provide much by way of comedy and menace, only to virtually disappear after the interval. But Masque of Might remains an exhilarating experience.
Runs in repertory until 27th October 2023, then tours
