Nabucco

Nabucco was written when Verdi was only 28 in 1842, and was a great success. It has a complex plot, two locations, and one very famous song:  The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves. It tells of the capture by Nabucco (Nebuchadnezzar) of Jerusalem, and his enslavement of the Jews, and is set in Jerusalem and Babylon. The aforementioned Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves became an anthem of the Italian Risorgimento – the movement that freed the Italian states from foreign domination, and united them politically.

There was an impressive set, reminiscent of the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, I believe, which I saw in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. The set remained the same throughout, despite the fact that Act 1 was set in Jerusalem. I read later in the programme that a Menorah had indicated the Jerusalem setting, but I had not noticed its presence. There was an impressive throne, and some dangerous looking swords and daggers. Lighting was effective throughout, with good use of colour to add drama and mood.

Simple costumes of long gowns and shawls for all, Hebrew prayer shawls for the men, for the scenes with the Jews in Jerusalem, and when they were slaves in Babylon. Fine headdresses transformed them into citizens of Babylon. I felt though that a clearer demarcation might have been possible, I sometimes wondered where we were, and who was who. Fenena wore an attractive dress and boleros, Abigail was clad in short warrior tunic and gaitors.  Colourful robes and headgear for the priests and nobles.

The 8 piece orchestra, conducted as always so ably by Lewis Gaston, led us into and through Verdi’s score with style, sensitivity and panache. There was always a good balance between instruments and voices, and a delicious volume of sound filled the auditorium.

Nabucco, this work of epic proportions, gives us some of the most highly charged and dramatic music in Italian opera. It also provides ample opportunity for the cast to develop their characters, especially in the case of Nabucco himself and his warrior daughter Abigail. Simon Wilson gave us a fine Nabucco, fine in voice and also clearly portraying the King as cruel tyrant, then as feeble, weakened and demented old man following the lightning strike, and as the redeemed and just ruler after his repentance and conversion to the Jewish faith. Laura Wolk-Lewanowicz made a really terrifying Abigail, terrorising her sister Fenena, and once spurned by her beloved Ishmael, conspiring with the High Priest of Baal to take over Nabucco’s throne. Yet she too is finally full of remorse, and gives her blessing to Ishmael and Fenena and asks forgiveness of the god of the Jews, before the poison she has taken takes hold. Both roles extremely challenging, but accomplished superbly well by these two soloists.

Eleanor Janes and Kevin John, as the two lovers Fenena and Ishmael provided tender moments among all the drama, (though their love story was fraught with danger until the end), and sang exquisitely. The rich bass voice of Matthew Thistleton (Zechariah) was wonderful to listen to, and the other soloists added to the quality of the performance.

The GOC chorus delighted, as always, with their sumptuous sound. Their acting was in the main good. I enjoyed the staging of the Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves, as, rather than in standing pose, they were seated, looking exhausted, dejected and forlorn as they sang this famous piece so sweetly.

A good production again from Guildford Opera Company.

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