Opera running Tuesday 10th until Saturday 14th November 2009 @ Hippodrome, Bristol

There are a lot of things most people don’t know about Puccini’s operas: One is that tonight was the Welsh National Opera’s 200th performance of his 1904 masterpiece Madame Butterfly; an impressive feat in itself. A more interesting fact is that Puccini wrote three versions. In this long-running production, Joachim Herz has combined the optimum elements of them all to create a beautifully lyrical 2hours 50minutes of pure drama. At the Bristol Hippodrome for only two performances in 2009, WNO’s Butterfly still maintains the magic it held on its Cardiff opening in 1978.

It doesn’t take an expert to gauge that Puccini was capable of writing opera scores which are extremely attractive to the ear; WNO can also make it extremely attractive to watch. As the curtain rose on this performance, layers of netting and silk blossom wrapped the deep stage with in glowing light. The stage itself had stage presence, although the browns chosen by Zimmerman appeared rather dated and produced an eerie effect something like watching a black-and-white film. This was then enhanced by the fantastic attention to detail in a minute, sprawling model city at the foot of the stage. It didn’t take much though to keep our eyes fixed on Russell Thomas’ immensely powerful Pinkerton. His lyric tenor voice took some time to warm up but once he had become settled, even the odd lapse in time keeping with the orchestra did not detract from the sheer quality of his tone and intonation. Thomas clearly enjoys this role and this was absorbed easily by the audience.

He has been strangely matched with Judith Howarth for this stage of WNO’s tour; despite her maturity, a little more freshness or a lighter tone might suit Cio-Cio-San’s charm better. Having said this, Howarth’s performance was sturdy, as was that of her servant, Suzuki, played by the feisty Claire Bradshaw. In fact, it is not difficult to foresee Bradshaw eventually filling the title role. This aside, the cast delivered admirable performances and delivered the climaxes Puccini inserted so effectively with panache. The final scene deserves particular praise; with the stalls so near to the Hippodrome’s orchestra pit, the timpani held nothing back to rapturous applause.

It’s not difficult to see why Herz’s Butterfly has been continued for so long. It is engaging, the cast and orchestra conduct proceedings at a comfortable pace and the set is elegant and silky. One can’t help coming away from this performance with the notion that it might be time for a few fresh ideas though; a little re-invigoration would do this opera no harm at all.

www.bristolhippodrome.org.uk

Katy Austin