I still regard myself as being a newcomer to opera although, when I think back, I have now been to quite a few productions. This one is unlike any of the others in many ways. First of all there are no bonkers characters, making it an opera for grown-ups. There are touches of comedy but overall the story and ambience are very dark, neither are there catchy tunes to act as earworms on the way home. The set is sparse and minimalist and the cast comprises people from all elements of Opera North’s branches, including construction workers and, seemingly, a health and safety inspector.
It was obvious from the outset that this was going to be different as the first five minutes or so were totally devoid of sound, either singing or spoken. The curtain opened to reveal the half-clothed body of a man lying on the seashore. The cast, acting as locals, gathered round in silence looking at the cadaver and shaking their heads or exchanging meaningful glances. Eventually, after totally obscuring sight of the deceased, they dispersed to reveal that the man had disappeared. This was not so much a case of less is more, as nothing is everything.
The cast returned, holding what appeared to be pallets which they formed into a barrier to act as a courtroom, where the case of Peter Grimes was being heard. This was superbly executed and the action proper began.
Peter Grimes, John Findon in court with lawyer, John Swallow, sung by James Cresswell.
Peter Grimes is a fisherman in a small community where everyone knows everyone else and the hearing was to determine whether he was responsible for the death at sea of his apprentice. Grimes was a man who lived for his job and was obsessed with catching more fish than everyone else, mainly because he wanted to settle down with the local teacher, Ellen Orford, so felt he needed to amass as much money as he could in order to provide for her. The coroner heard that the fatal fishing trip had yielded a bumper catch and so Peter Grimes had decided to head for London to sell his fish rather than saturate the market in his local port, thus causing the price to be lower. En route, they encountered a storm and the apprentice, William Spode, had died due to lack of food and water. The cargo had also been lost. Although the townspeople at the hearing were convinced of Grimes’s negligence, a verdict of accidental death was returned on the grounds that Grimes had saved the life of Spode on a previous occasion and he had nothing to gain from his death. This didn’t convince most of the inhabitants who had come to their own conclusion, reinforced by the news that he had approached the local fixer, Ned Keane, to find him a new apprentice from the workhouse. Keane was also an apothecary who was supplying the locals with laudanum for recreational purposes.
The Methodist preacher, Bob Boles, was key in rabble rousing the locals to take action against Grimes, but Ellen and Captain Balstrode, a retired merchant navy officer, tried to placate them and convince Grimes to take it a bit easier.
Johannes Moore as fixer and apothecary, Ned Keene, takes an interest in the call to arms from Bob Boles, Stuart Jackson
Being a loner, living only with John, the new apprentice, he attracted suspicion anyway, but when the young lad appeared with bruising to his neck, tongues wagged even more. Such was the determination to make a fortune, he sought out John one Sunday after he had spied a large shoal just off shore, and, even though the weather was bad and it was John’s rest day, he dragged him from the company of Ellen, who was knitting him a sweater with an anchor motif, in order to set sail. When Ellen protested, Grimes struck her and the man and boy set out to sea.
John Findon as Peter Grimes and Philippa Boyle as Ellen Orford, share a tender moment.
Meanwhile the Sunday church congregation had repaired to The Boar, a bar owned by Auntie, who acted as landlady and entertained the customers by not only selling booze but also allowing the local men to while away some time with her two nieces – for a price.
Johannes Moore as Ned Keene, making a donation to Hilary Summers as Auntie, for the pleasure of the company of First niece, Nazan Fikret and second niece, Ava Dodd.
Grimes’s hut has been destroyed in another storm and he and John were building a replacement lookout platform when the young boy fell from the top and died. This obviously empowered the mob, led by Boles, to go on the rampage to take revenge. Ellen and Captain Balstrode found him first and the Captain convinced him that he should do the honourable thing and take his boat out beyond sight of the shore and sink it, an option he chose over being lynched. It then became clear, as Grimes removed his upper clothing, that it was he who was the body at the beginning of the piece, which had been told in flashback form. Brilliant.
Johannes Moore as Ned Keene, Daniel Norman as Rev Horace Adams, Blaise Malaba, with drum, as Hobson and James Creswell as Swallow with members of the Chorus of Opera North
There was not one element of this opera with which I could find fault – now there’s a first. Not only was the singing incredible, both in solo and ensemble form, but the contrast was breathtaking. From the silence of the opening to the full cast performances, which, as the townspeople comprised members of the Chorus of Opera North as well as children from the Youth Section, when the whole body of singers let rip on a couple of occasions, the effect was mind boggling.
Philippa Boyle as Ellen Orford examines the sweater she knitted for John with Simon Bailey as Captain Balstrode.
The casting could not have been better either. John Findon as Peter Grimes, exuded a simultaneous air of threat and naivety. Ellen Orford, Philippa Boyle, had the widowed schoolma’am vibe to a tee, demonstrating compassion to the boy, John, as well as understanding the childlike personality of Grimes. The rest of the cast are mentioned with their photographs and all were wonderful, but the star of the show has to be Toby Dray, the apprentice, John. I don’t know how old he is but seemed not much more than a child. He never sang or uttered a word, but was verbally abused by Grimes and comforted by Ellen, expressing the appropriate demeanour in all aspects. His pièce de résistance, however, was his fall from the watch tower, you wouldn’t have even got me up there in the first place, let alone plunge off it.
John Findon as Peter Grimes and Toby Dray as John, just before he topples to his death from the tower, which was erected on stage before our very eyes.
As previously mentioned, the score by Benjamin Britten was not exactly filled with memorable tunes, in fact there were no real tunes at all, but the score worked brilliantly in that it enabled the words to be delivered at the appropriate pace and provided atmosphere to the various situations. An advantageous side-effect to this was that the action and tension wasn’t broken up by applause, as is the case when a particularly strong, or famous, aria is delivered.
The full company
If you want a night of light entertainment with familiar tunes then you have probably deduced this is not one for you, but, should you wish to be totally engaged in a powerful story with strong characters and underlying social elements it is well worth the effort.
As is my want, I had a chat with the chap sitting next to me, who was extremely pleasant and told me he had come from London especially for this opera. He is a Peter Grimes groupie and has seen it in various guises over the years. He said that, apart from one production by English National Opera, this was the best of the lot. He also makes the trip to Leeds when any of Opera North’s productions are staged and commented that he was particularly impressed by the Orchestra of Opera North who always seem to inject a fresh perspective to whatever they do. It is always satisfying to know that someone who knows what they are talking about ratifies my opinion.
Peter Grimes is at Leeds Grand Theatre on 19th February at 6.30pm and 21st February at 7.00pm after which it moves on to Theatre Royal Nottingham on 6th March, Lowry, Salford on 13th March and Newcastle Theatre Royal on 20th March, all performances begin at 7.00pm.
For more information and bookings, please go to https://www.operanorth.co.uk/whats-on/peter-grimes/ where you will also find various ticket offers.
To see what is coming up at Leeds Grand Theatre it is https://leedsheritagetheatres.com/whats-on/?theatre=leeds-grand-theatre
Photographs by James Glossop.
Tyke It To The Limit 