By Elizabeth Flux
OPERA
Macbeth
Melbourne Opera, until May 26
When putting on a story as well known and widely performed as Macbeth, things can go one of two ways: it can be a triumph or it can be excruciatingly dull. There’s no in between.
Simon Meadows and Helena Dix star in Melbourne Opera’s Macbeth.Credit: Robin Hall
Melbourne Opera’s staging of Giuseppe Verdi’s Macbeth easily falls into the former – it is faithful, camp, and in a word that feels strange to associate with the tale of a couple driven to murder and madness in the pursuit of power, joyous.
The score has a large part to play in this. Operas normally only contain one or two climactic songs – Macbeth, however, feels made up almost entirely of breakout hits, switching the mood from almost unpalatable dread, to frenzied optimism, to sorrow.
Each of the four principal cast are given the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and range. Simon Meadows as Macbeth and Adrian Tamburini as Banquo rise to the challenge admirably, but it is Samuel Sakker as a powerful and sombre Macduff and Helena Dix as Lady Macbeth who truly shine. Melbourne Opera’s chorus are strong in the big numbers, though when performing scenes without the principal cast, at times had slight issues with synchronisation.
Verdi wrote two versions of Macbeth, the first in 1847 and a revised version in 1865. For the most part it is the revised version being staged, but director Bruce Beresford has reinstated a previously cut aria in the final scene, bringing together both versions to make for a more satisfying ending. Beresford’s decision to stick to Verdi’s – and Shakespeare’s – original 11th century Scotland setting also shows you don’t need to set Macbeth in a different era to stage a vibrant performance.
There are plans to stream the final performance via live VR, and it will be interesting to see how the experience translates outside of the theatre.