Mazeppa
It would be too easy to pick holes in the plot of this Tchaikovsky opera, but in all honesty this aspect is one of very few which could be faulted. Peter Stein has again done a masterful job of directing an epic without losing sight of the intimate plot strands at its heart. The soloists - nearly all Russian - were in tremendous voice, Anatoli Kotscherga's Kochubey particularly fine while Marianna Tarasova (as his wife) gave the sort of performance that makes one wish there were more alto roles in opera.
Under the baton of Kirill Petrenko, the orchestra of the Opéra National de Lyon provided glorious support, sounding as idiomatic and comfortable with the music as they had in last week's Kurt Weill double bill. Again, it is to be hoped this visit is not a one-off.
Performances this enthralling are rare. In fact, I would challenge anyone to find another three-and-three-quarter-hour opera capable of flying by so fast.
Under the baton of Kirill Petrenko, the orchestra of the Opéra National de Lyon provided glorious support, sounding as idiomatic and comfortable with the music as they had in last week's Kurt Weill double bill. Again, it is to be hoped this visit is not a one-off.
Performances this enthralling are rare. In fact, I would challenge anyone to find another three-and-three-quarter-hour opera capable of flying by so fast.
Budapest Festival Orchestra
What can an orchestra possibly give as an encore following a superlative performance of The rite of spring? Ivàn Fischer, understanding the need for a complete contrast, plumbed for a Bach chorale (on wind and brass instruments only), beautifully played, before releasing the fireworks with Brahms' 6th Hungarian dance. It brought a fine concert to an equally fine concert.
The first half, all Bartók, highlighted the happy inspiration of the Romanian dances (not without a introspective tinge where necessary) and the third Piano concerto with Richard Goode displaying a light touch at the keyboard, especially successful in the woodland noises of the slow movement. Very much a programme to test the capabilities of the wind instruments, and they passed with flying colours.
Let's hope Jonathan Mills, Festival Director in waiting, invites Fischer and his orchestra back. We could do with more of this.
The first half, all Bartók, highlighted the happy inspiration of the Romanian dances (not without a introspective tinge where necessary) and the third Piano concerto with Richard Goode displaying a light touch at the keyboard, especially successful in the woodland noises of the slow movement. Very much a programme to test the capabilities of the wind instruments, and they passed with flying colours.
Let's hope Jonathan Mills, Festival Director in waiting, invites Fischer and his orchestra back. We could do with more of this.
The Jazz Centre: Colin Steele quintet
Colin Steele has always stood out for his ability to combine Scottish folk music and jazz, which creates an immediately recognisable sound. There could be no doubting the joie de vivre in the performance, the nonchalance of the musicians belying their concentration (and vice-versa). That said, it was a shame they frequently carried away and forgot they were playing in a small venue with amplification: toning down the volume woud have done no harm.
The nature of the improvisations varied according to the instruments featured, the saxophonist favouring more outlandish harmonies and ever higher notes which contrasted oddly with Steele's own finely-wrought moments in the spotlight. Both, however, were outdone by Dave Milligan's musings at the piano. All in all, a fine - if over-loud - evening.
The Colin Steele quintet returns to the Lot (4 Grassmarket) at 7:30pm on 24th-26th August. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
The nature of the improvisations varied according to the instruments featured, the saxophonist favouring more outlandish harmonies and ever higher notes which contrasted oddly with Steele's own finely-wrought moments in the spotlight. Both, however, were outdone by Dave Milligan's musings at the piano. All in all, a fine - if over-loud - evening.
The Colin Steele quintet returns to the Lot (4 Grassmarket) at 7:30pm on 24th-26th August. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
The Canterbury tales
Teetering dangerously on the verge of bad acting, Distraction Theatre Company just about pulls this off. The two colourful Tales presented here - those related by the miller and the wife of Bath - have tremendous potential for a rip-roaring adaptation, so it's really a pity the production is merely enjoyably silly.
By far the best of the cast are Luke Bryant and Rebecca Gadsby in character actor roles which, in less seasoned hands, would have come off as slightly embarassing. Despite all their enthusiasm, the remainder of the cast do not quite convince in the straighter roles. Thankfully it's all pretty lively (the inspired choice of soundtrack helping considerably here), but this could have been so much better.
The Canterbury tales is on at 4pm at Augustine's (George IV Bridge) on Thursday 17th, Saturday 19th, Wednesday 23rd, Friday 25th and Sunday 27th August. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
By far the best of the cast are Luke Bryant and Rebecca Gadsby in character actor roles which, in less seasoned hands, would have come off as slightly embarassing. Despite all their enthusiasm, the remainder of the cast do not quite convince in the straighter roles. Thankfully it's all pretty lively (the inspired choice of soundtrack helping considerably here), but this could have been so much better.
The Canterbury tales is on at 4pm at Augustine's (George IV Bridge) on Thursday 17th, Saturday 19th, Wednesday 23rd, Friday 25th and Sunday 27th August. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
Emily Beynon/Andrew West recital
Unfortunately - given the comparative rarity of flute recitals - this was something of a mixed bag. Even Borne's Carmen fantasy, a crowd-pleaser if there ever was one, failed to erase memories of disappointing Prokofiev, where excessive vibrato (particularly in the lower register) belied the neo-classicism of the music.
Playing Debussy's Syrinx from the wings, no matter how authentic, may be a great idea in theory if it didn't render the music sometimes barely audible to the audience in the stalls opposite. The piano lid, on the other hand, should not have been left wide open in the other items. Only in the slow movement of Poulenc's Sonata did all gel properly in an equal partnership between the two instruments, highlighting Beynon's seamless legato. Thankfully the encore - more Poulenc, as it happens - was in the same vein.
On another note, Edinburgh's libraries and music shops are to be applauded for providing the performers with copies of the music and Beynon with a flute after their own fell victim to current luggage restrictions in air travel.
Playing Debussy's Syrinx from the wings, no matter how authentic, may be a great idea in theory if it didn't render the music sometimes barely audible to the audience in the stalls opposite. The piano lid, on the other hand, should not have been left wide open in the other items. Only in the slow movement of Poulenc's Sonata did all gel properly in an equal partnership between the two instruments, highlighting Beynon's seamless legato. Thankfully the encore - more Poulenc, as it happens - was in the same vein.
On another note, Edinburgh's libraries and music shops are to be applauded for providing the performers with copies of the music and Beynon with a flute after their own fell victim to current luggage restrictions in air travel.
The Lindberg flight/The flight over the ocean and The seven deadly sins
A Weill/Brecht double bill may sound a little unlikely for the operatic stage, but this was a challenge pulled off with great aplomb. Financial prosperity provides a link between the two, banknotes raining down at the end of the Flight to be rolled about in through a good deal of the Sins. The only other connection came in the backdrop, a map highlighting the journey of the characters.
Of the two, the Sins is without a doubt more of a crowd-pleaser, allowing for infinitely more scope for imaginative staging. François Girard and Marie Chouinard (director and choreographer respectively) have gone to town here - even including break-dancing, of all things! - on a set dominated by the colour scarlet. Happily, they are more than matched by Gun-Brit Barkmin's astounding performance as Anna I, veering between the lyrical and raucous with the consumate ease of an Ute Lemper. Yet her biography tells us that she has also sung Mimì and the Countess in Figaro ...
It is just as well the Flight preceded this. Much less showy, Brecht's Verfremdungseffekt visible on every aspect of the production, it feels like something of an oddity for Weill, the music sounding at times more like Shostakovich. With Charles Workman perhaps a little hoarse in the title role, the work of the chorus came centre-stage, every syllable beautifully clear. Here, as in the Sins, Urban Malmberg in particular stood out among the smaller roles, though this was very much Barkmin's evening.
The Lindberg flight/The flight over the ocean and The seven deadly sins are at 7:15pm at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre (Nicholson St) until Wednesday, 16th August. Phone the EIF box office (0131 473 2000) for details.
Of the two, the Sins is without a doubt more of a crowd-pleaser, allowing for infinitely more scope for imaginative staging. François Girard and Marie Chouinard (director and choreographer respectively) have gone to town here - even including break-dancing, of all things! - on a set dominated by the colour scarlet. Happily, they are more than matched by Gun-Brit Barkmin's astounding performance as Anna I, veering between the lyrical and raucous with the consumate ease of an Ute Lemper. Yet her biography tells us that she has also sung Mimì and the Countess in Figaro ...
It is just as well the Flight preceded this. Much less showy, Brecht's Verfremdungseffekt visible on every aspect of the production, it feels like something of an oddity for Weill, the music sounding at times more like Shostakovich. With Charles Workman perhaps a little hoarse in the title role, the work of the chorus came centre-stage, every syllable beautifully clear. Here, as in the Sins, Urban Malmberg in particular stood out among the smaller roles, though this was very much Barkmin's evening.
The Lindberg flight/The flight over the ocean and The seven deadly sins are at 7:15pm at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre (Nicholson St) until Wednesday, 16th August. Phone the EIF box office (0131 473 2000) for details.
Flanders and Swann
An absolute joy. Without restricting themselves to the published songs of Flanders and Swann, Tim Fitzhigham and Duncan Walsh Atkins revive many old favourites, involving the audience at many a turn. Walsh Atkins is definitely in command here, bantering with the audience, ad libbing constantly, though Fitzhigham is no slouch, doing a beautiful job of recreating Swann's improvisory style at the piano. The whole enterprise is as fresh and witty as anyone could ask, whether familiar with the originals or not.
Somehow - somehow - they even get away with the Song of patriotic prejudice and its (however ironic) suggestion that the English are best which, in any other hands, would be best left well alone. Such temerity alone deserves recognition.
At the drop of a hippopotamus is on at 2:30pm at the Cabaret Bar of the Pleasance Courtyard (The Pleasance) until Monday 28th August (except Tuesday 22nd). Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
Somehow - somehow - they even get away with the Song of patriotic prejudice and its (however ironic) suggestion that the English are best which, in any other hands, would be best left well alone. Such temerity alone deserves recognition.
At the drop of a hippopotamus is on at 2:30pm at the Cabaret Bar of the Pleasance Courtyard (The Pleasance) until Monday 28th August (except Tuesday 22nd). Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
Troilus and Cressida
What a fabulous start to the International Festival. One of Shakespeare's lesser-known plays is given a new lease of life, with a production as epic as the Trojan war demands, faultless acting from the RSC and superlative direction by Peter Stein. Troilus running for a full fortnight may have been a risky prospect, even with a copious amount of flesh on display, but this deserves to be a huge success.
Interestingly, the staging has something in common with the Lyceum's staging of As you like it earlier this year. In this case, however, it does not just signify a change of scene but serves to broaden the play's focus (most notably in the second half, when scenes with over a dozen characters are frequent). The lovers' intimacy cannot possibly be maintained when the outside world threatens their relationship, and the staging reflects this - just as trumpets manage to impinge on Paris and Helen's lovemaking, even if they swap fanfares for a Miles Davis vein.
At three-and-a-half hours long, this does require a good attention span but is very much worth the effort. Not to be missed.
Troilus and Cressida is on at the King's Theatre (Leven St) from Monday 14th to Saturday 26th August. Phone the EIF box office (0131 473 2000) for details.
Interestingly, the staging has something in common with the Lyceum's staging of As you like it earlier this year. In this case, however, it does not just signify a change of scene but serves to broaden the play's focus (most notably in the second half, when scenes with over a dozen characters are frequent). The lovers' intimacy cannot possibly be maintained when the outside world threatens their relationship, and the staging reflects this - just as trumpets manage to impinge on Paris and Helen's lovemaking, even if they swap fanfares for a Miles Davis vein.
At three-and-a-half hours long, this does require a good attention span but is very much worth the effort. Not to be missed.
Troilus and Cressida is on at the King's Theatre (Leven St) from Monday 14th to Saturday 26th August. Phone the EIF box office (0131 473 2000) for details.
Bach's Mass in B minor
A regular feature of the Fringe programme, Ludus Baroque's performance of this Bach masterpiece was by and large convincing - the orchestra providing fabulous support, even if the trumpets were sometimes allowed to dominate the sound - but, as ever with concerts in the Canongate Kirk, suffered from the acoustic. The homophonic choruses and small scale arias were spared, unlike those numbers in which the counterpoint got lost somewhere in the ether.
Only in the Sanctus was every note to be heard: it can be no coincidence that the best of the evening's soloists all took part here. In the solo numbers, Lucy Ballard's Ferrieresque richness of tone contrasted well with Malcolm Bennett's and Libby Crabtree's pleasing lack of vibrato, while Matthew Brook's legato in the Et in Spiritum Sanctum was an undoubted highlight.
Another cautious recommendation.
This concert is repeated tomorrow, Saturday 12th August, at 7:30pm at the Canongate Kirk. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
Only in the Sanctus was every note to be heard: it can be no coincidence that the best of the evening's soloists all took part here. In the solo numbers, Lucy Ballard's Ferrieresque richness of tone contrasted well with Malcolm Bennett's and Libby Crabtree's pleasing lack of vibrato, while Matthew Brook's legato in the Et in Spiritum Sanctum was an undoubted highlight.
Another cautious recommendation.
This concert is repeated tomorrow, Saturday 12th August, at 7:30pm at the Canongate Kirk. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
Black comedy
Another show caught early in its run, another show in need of tightening round the edges. It will become sharper, but for the moment it's still something of a curate's egg.
This is another of those productions for which an internet search has not yielded any information on the company or actors. The male lead gives a strong performance, his increasing sense of desperation nicely nuanced and quite a fine physical comedian to boot. Unfortunately his early scenes with Carol verged on the inaudible, but that apart this was a confident portrayal of Brindsley. In the smaller roles, the actor playing Harold Gorringe is most worthy of note, his physical attraction to and flirtatious attitude towards Brindsley given just the right amount of predatory machismo until the inevitable perceived betrayal.
The key to a successful performance of this Shaffer farce lies in the lighting - intensely bright when the power is off, pitch black when it is on. Unfortunately the venue put paid to the darkness, numerous light sources dispelling the atmosphere. It is to be hoped that something can be done to rectify this, as in other respects this has the makings of a fine show.
Black comedy is on at 2pm at C (Chambers Street) every day until Monday 28th August. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
This is another of those productions for which an internet search has not yielded any information on the company or actors. The male lead gives a strong performance, his increasing sense of desperation nicely nuanced and quite a fine physical comedian to boot. Unfortunately his early scenes with Carol verged on the inaudible, but that apart this was a confident portrayal of Brindsley. In the smaller roles, the actor playing Harold Gorringe is most worthy of note, his physical attraction to and flirtatious attitude towards Brindsley given just the right amount of predatory machismo until the inevitable perceived betrayal.
The key to a successful performance of this Shaffer farce lies in the lighting - intensely bright when the power is off, pitch black when it is on. Unfortunately the venue put paid to the darkness, numerous light sources dispelling the atmosphere. It is to be hoped that something can be done to rectify this, as in other respects this has the makings of a fine show.
Black comedy is on at 2pm at C (Chambers Street) every day until Monday 28th August. Phone the Festival Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) for details.
Reviews A-Z
- Edinburgh Festival season 2006: Bach's Mass in B minor (Fringe)
- Angel-A
- Banlieue 13
- Brokeback Mountain
- Capote
- Casanova
- Charlie and the chocolate factory
- The constant gardener
- The Da Vinci code
- Edinburgh Festival season 2005: Autistic license (Fringe)
- Edward Scissorhands (Matthew Bourne ballet)
- Good night, and good luck
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (novel)
- Hebrides Ensemble plays Ravel
- Keeping mum
- King Kong (2005)
- Lady and the tramp (DVD)
- Memoirs of a geisha
- Merry Christmas
- Mission: Impossible III
- Lisa Milne in recital (Usher Hall International Series 2005/06)
- Munich
- The new statesman
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead man's chest
- Romeo and Juliet (Edinburgh University)
- Rose St Ensemble's Mozart birthday concert
- Royal Lyceum Theatre Company (2005/06 season): Faust, parts I and II
- Royal Scottish National Orchestra: American icons (2005/06 season)
- Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Mozart and Prokofiev (2005/06 season)
- Superman returns
- Syriana
- Transamerica
- United 93
- Walk the line (2006 film)
- The war of the worlds (2005 film)
- William Jewell College Choir
The bald prima donna (Fringe)
Emily Beynon/Andrew West recital (EIF) Black comedy (Fringe)
Budapest Festival Orchestra (EIF)
The Canterbury tales (Fringe)
Flanders and Swann (Fringe)
The Jazz Centre: Colin Steele quintet (Fringe)
The Lindberg flight/The flight over the ocean and The seven deadly sins (EIF)
Mazeppa (EIF)
The real Inspector Hound (Fringe)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead (Fringe)
Shakespeare's passions (Fringe)
Troilus and Cressida (EIF)
Beautiful thing (Fringe)
Curlew river (EIF)
Dutch National Ballet (EIF)
Bach cantatas for solo voice (Fringe)
Dido and Aeneas (Fringe)
Fitz Barbershop (Fringe)
Graveyard music (Fringe)
Magdalena Kožená recital (EIF)
MacHomer (Fringe)
Michelangelo string quartet (EIF)
Monteverdi Vespers (EIF)
Monty Python's Flying Circus in French (Fringe)
Philomusica of Edinburgh (Fringe)
Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra (EIF)
Les liaisons dangereuses
Tartuffe
