What an absolute treat to hear opera up close and personal. I can’t remember the last time they staged opera or operetta at this bijou off West End theatre – I believe it was The Mikado, directed by Thom Southerland, many years ago. But on the evidence here, they should definitely do it more often!
Not staged in the composer Dionizetti’s lifetime, Rita, is a shiny bright one-act jewel in the Italian opera cannon. At a brisk 75 minutes without an interval, sung in English. it is a wonderful gateway production for anyone wanting to dip their toe into the world of opera for the first time. With spousal abuse making front page headlines this week, its storyline is a tad dodgy – Rita of the title was regularly knocked about by her first alpha male husband, Gasparo, long ago thought dead in a sea disaster.
She has remarried to Beppe, who she slaps and keeps under the marital thumb. .. then Gasparo turns up out of the blue as he wants to remarry in Canada! The new translation and orchestrations by director Alejandro Bonatt – a rising star name to watch – are a delight, the Faust Chamber Orchestra under conductor Mark Austin, sited high on the opposite side to the audience, played up a storm. Singers Laura Lolita Perešivana, Brenton Spiteri and Phil Wilcox have great comic chops and their singing could not be bettered. The highly inventive set of moving door frames by Nicolai Hart-Hansen was a delight and served the show well.
This fast-paced fizzy comedy is highly recommended.
****
Rita is at the Charing Cross Theatre, The Arches, Villiers Street, London WC2N 6NL until Saturday 20th August. Box office: 08444 93065. www.charingcrosstheatre.co.uk
BOYZ SPECIAL TICKET OFFER
All tickets for Rita just £20 using the BOYZ25 promo code at the Charing Cross Theatre box office here.
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