The week in classical: Le nozze di Figaro; Die Zauberflöte

The Guardian

22-03-2025

For a young British opera singer to succeed today, it's not enough to have an outstanding voice, natural musicianship and a commanding stage presence. It also requires a steely determination to cope with both the paucity of work at home and the bureaucratic nightmare abroad after Brexit.
Successive Tory governments presided over the decline of our leading opera companies, with huge cuts in funding at English National Opera, where seasons are shorter, productions recycled and the orchestra, chorus and music staff put on short-term contracts. And Glyndebourne and Welsh National Opera haven't escaped the knife, forcing them to cease touring; so much for levelling up.
Boris Johnson's chaotic Brexit agreement simply forgot that pulling away from Europe would not only make life difficult for exporters – it would place huge barriers in the way of musicians. There's talk of trying to ease these restrictions, but is there the political will to do some joined-up thinking too? Music is a huge earner for this country, but music education is becoming the preserve of those who can afford it. If our new government is serious about supporting the arts (and growth), it must make music a natural part of the curriculum and help create real opportunities for those who want to progress. That sounds like a vain hope when disability benefits are being cut and defence spending rising, but we know that access to music-making – in whatever form and at whatever level – can have a positive effect on young people's health and wellbeing. It's better than staring at a screen.
How ironic, then, that Britain, seen across the world as a leading centre of excellence for music training at conservatoire level, has so few opportunities for graduates once they are ready for work. Traditionally, new British singers have had to head to Europe to gain the experience they cannot find at home, but now the paperwork around visas and work permits makes this a daunting prospect, both for the singer and the employer. And the opportunity for worldwide audiences to hear young artists diminishes even further with the threatened withdrawal of BBC Radio 3 from digital services overseas. Given all this, it's gratifying to see that roll numbers have remained consistent at two of our top royal colleges, and – judging by two new Mozart productions staged last week – whatever the hurdles, there are new stars emerging.
One name to watch is Ross Fettes, who sang Figaro in the first of two casts in the Royal College of Music's Le nozze di Figaro, directed with wit and charm by Jeremy Sams. Fettes is the whole package, possessing a fine, lyrical bass-baritone and a nimble way with comedy when outwitting his lecherous boss, Count Almaviva, sung by Sam Hird, a strong performer who grew in stature vocally as the evening progressed. Charlotte Jane Kennedy triumphed as Susanna, Figaro's equally crafty fiancee, her creamy soprano voice carrying her effortlessly through one of the most demanding roles in the repertoire.
Soprano Madeline Boreham brought an admirable, dignified grace to her portrayal of Countess Almaviva, and fine control to her centrepiece aria Dove sono. Mezzo Cecilia Yufan Zhang was wonderfully energetic as the page Cherubino, and notable among the smaller roles were tenor Marcus Swietlicki as Basilio, Alexandria Moon as Marcellina and Bella Marslen as Barbarina. Diction was strong throughout and ensemble singing particularly impressive.
The RCM Opera Orchestra responded well to conductor Michael Rosewell's measured tempi, with some fine woodwind playing particularly evident. Movement director Scott Howland enhanced the comedy with some witty footwork, in a production that was set in a crumbling 1980s French chateau, designed by Alex Doidge-Green and lit by Tim Mitchell.
Lighting by Charlie Morgan Jones played a central role over at the Royal Academy of Music in its production of Die Zauberflöte, the bare stage dominated by dozens of fixed floodlights and about 20 neon strips that hovered, rose and descended in a balletic emulation of the action – one even transforming into the magic flute of the title. Mozart's singspiel is endlessly adaptable, and here director Jamie Manton and designer Justin Nardella chose to make the sage Sarastro a charismatic surgeon and his temple a hospital, with patients as his devotees. But having cast members in gowns and masks wrestling with tubes and breathing apparatus as the overture progressed felt uncomfortable on the fifth anniversary of the pandemic lockdown.
In the first iteration of this double-cast show, however, we had a fine Papageno to lighten the mood. Mellifluous baritone Conrad Chatterton was instantly engaging, making the most of his role as birdcatcher/hospital cleaner in this extended post-operative hallucination, complete with cart, mops and disinfectant. Spectacular Queen of the Night Binny Supin Yang electrified the audience with her superb coloratura, which contrasted nicely with the velvety soprano of her disillusioned daughter, Pamina (Grace Hope-Gill). Daniel Vening made an impressively sage Sarastro, noble in his aria O Isis und Osiris, with tenor Owen Lucas a suitably menacing Monostatos and bass Theodore McAlindon a sonorous Speaker. Conductor Olivia Clarke kept the sparky Royal Academy Sinfonia on their toes with some enjoyably lively tempi.
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the evening was the quality of the voices in the excellent chorus, promising more standout solo performances in future productions. Most of the principals in both of these shows will be going on to engagements in summer opera seasons in the UK and abroad, but what comes after depends as much on political will as it does on their undoubted talents.
Star ratings (out of five)
Le nozze di Figaro ★★★★
Die Zauberflöte ★★★
Le nozze di Figaro is at the Britten theatre, Royal College of Music, London, until Saturday 22 March