by Ewart Shaw
THE lights go down. Stars appear, and there is the Pequod, out of Nantucket, ahuntin' the whale.
It is the mesmerising beginning to an astounding journey. The Great American Novel has become a grand new opera. Leviathan has been drawn out.
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| Grant Doyle as Starbuck with Jay Hunter Morris as Ahab. |
The story unfolds with cinematic flair. Jake Heggie and his librettist, Gene Scheer, have distilled down the Melville tale, carefully balancing high drama with lighter relief, from the banter of the crew to the apocalyptic visions of judgment and revenge that drive Captain Ahab.
Heggie's music is melodious and sentimental; his writing for voices adept and gratifying, delivered by the cast with a care that renders the surtitles irrelevant.
Timothy Sexton draws out the lustrous colours of the score from the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, and the nearly 40-strong chorus is magnificent.
The first whale hunt is a tour de force with cabin boy Pip, Lorina Gore, singing suspended high above the stage. Starbuck's confrontation with Ahab is set against the butchering and boiling down of a whale carcass.
Jay Hunter Morris gives a fully rounded portrayal of Ahab, articulate and driven, but lacking a touch of madness the character requires.
Around him are some of the finest actor-singers you'll see in years. Grant Doyle as first mate Starbuck, in every moment, every gesture, communicates the depths of longing that fuel his spirit.
James Egglestone as Greenhorn is one of the finest young tenors around. His scenes with Queequeg, the imposing Jonathan Lemalu, are subtle and heartfelt.
Byron Watson as Stubb, Adam Goodburn as Flask, and the other crew are totally committed to this incredible adventure. Douglas McNicol, singing off-stage as the captain of another questing vessel brings real pathos to his brief lines.
It is a historic moment in the fortunes of State Opera, no longer just a point on the map of the opera world but a significant destination.
Link to original review here.
