This was an optical feast that delighted the eye, with its vivid opening scene, stunning sets and wonderful costumes, all combining to be a spectacular example of the joyful illusion that the best of theatre can achieve.
The performance opens 30 metres under a crystal clear tropical sea, the audience was visibly enthralled as three pear fishers dived repeatedly for the oyster shells that the village’s livelihood depended upon. The precariousness and poverty of the pearl fisher’s existence is expertly evocated in the set design of the village, with its overt overcrowding and squalor. Penny Woolcock’s theatrical direction and Dick Bird’s set design are sublime and are, by far and away, what makes this production remarkable.
The first performances of The Pearl Fishers were received with decidedly mixed reviews when it was first performed in Paris in 1863 and sank beneath the waves unnoticed and unmourned. It was only after the growing success of Carmen that Bizet’s early work was revisited and viewed in a more generous light. However, the opera itself is overstretched with a thin dramatic core that cannot be disguised and an extremely melodramatic finale that jars and with little relevance to the rest of the opera.
In the English National Opera’s production, Bizet’s rather thin plot and storyline are further exposed by a somewhat poor performance by Hannah Alattar as Leila, Princess of Brahma. Alattar’s singing was thin and seemed overwhelmed by the role, with little to mark it out from the chorus. It should be noted that in the performance I saw, the audience was warned beforehand that Alattar was suffering from a throat infection. However, reviews of earlier performances also highlighted the weakness of her soprano voice. It was as if one was listening to a note-perfect performance, but with little projection.
It may have been better to have allowed her understudy, the talented Alycia Fashae, to takeover for the evening. It also does seem strange that the ENO decided to hire Alattar from New York, when, in Fashae, they have a remarkable talent on their hands. There was also a notification at the end of Act One that Alfie Boe (Nadir) had succumbed to a similar throat infection, but would also continue with his performance. This may explain the flawed performance of the opera’s most famous aria “Au fond du temple saint” between Nadir and Zurga, with the harmonic beauty of the piece somewhat flawed as Boe seemed unable to give of his all.
What was outstanding about the operatic performances on the night was Quinn Kelsey playing the role of Zurga, the village headman. He dominated the stage with a rich baritone voice and was by far and away the foremost figure on stage. Kelsey’s impressive performance was ably backed up by Freddie Tong as Nourabad, the High Priest of Brahma.
The ENO’s chorus was, as ever, outstanding and whilst some operatic performances can be marred sometimes when a large chorus gives the impression of an overcrowded stage, the squalor and poverty of the pearl fisher’s village was only enhanced by the crowded scenes. The orchestra performed wonderfully, with both the flautist and harpist offering excellent performances. If one views an evening at the Coliseum with the ENO’s current production of The Pearl Fishers as musical theatre one will not be disappointed, as opera it was well below par in several respects.
