THE GONDOLIERS, Hinchley Manor Operatic Society, Surbiton Assembly Rooms, 19 Oct. 1977.

I am always surprised at the popularity of The Gondoliers and the frequency with which it is performed by amateur groups; for it is far from being the best of the G&S operas. Nor is it an easy one to perform. It is a sprawling, ragged piece built round a somewhat intermittent plot; with a sprawling, ragged set of unconvincing characters; and on this occasion it received a sprawling and rather ragged performance. The orchestra produced a rather fuzzy sound - the conductor (Norman Redston) did not seem to be able to make them hit the same notes simultaneously. The chorus tended to be flat, and some members seemed not to know the music very well, and were singing intermittently. The moves were slack, people tended to wander round the stage rather vaguely without any obvious reason or meaning - though it is to the credit of the producer (Joyce Tatlow) that some dances, such as the cachucha, were made into "spots" with only a couple of dancers actually dancing. Marco (Christopher Boa) had a rather thin voice, with a nasal sound, and was inaudible most of the time when singing with Giuseppe. (He was also inaudible when I heard him sometime later as Spoletta in Tosca at Richmond Theatre, with Gemini Opera.) He appeared to be saving himself for “Take a pair” which, when it came, was pleasantly sung, but I'm not sure it was worth waiting for. Giuseppe (John Bellamy) had a good attack and a very agreeable stage personality. I liked his voice very much. He was not sure of his lines, though one delicious laugh was provided when he referred to a king who was "absolutely unexceptionable". The way he blew his bandage up (it had been tied so that it covered his mouth as well as his eyes) on "All right-minded players" was a beautiful touch. Gianetta (Margaret Hall) seemed to be having trouble reaching the top notes; I suspect she was a mezzo singing above her range. She attacked all her notes from below and did not always manage to get there. Tessa (Dawn Rowland) had a beautiful voice and gave the most charming performance of the evening. There was a moment at the beginning of "When a merry maiden" when she seemed to be pulling her voice back into her throat, but this was only for a moment, and she soon recovered. The Duke (Graham Bennett) began very well, with a great deal of style, though it was a rather old-fashioned style. But before long he seemed to have become intoxicated by the effect he was making and started to overact. The gavotte (of which the encore was done as a piano solo) was goony and lacked dignity. He hideously overacted during most of Act 2. His antics during the Duchess's song were tasteless and unfunny. He was capable of some excellently subtle changes of tone and innuendo, but a lot of the time he degenerated into cheap music hall. He spoke in tune rather than sang - which is right for this Part - full marks. A delightful ad-lib was the reference to the 3-piece suite. The Duchess (Grace Redston) lacked voice or character. Casilda (Mary Bevan) had a sweet voice and her acting in the scene with Luiz was beautiful, but she became forced when she was required to put on the aristocratic act with her parents - these scenes were unconvincing. Luiz (Peter Brown) sang off-key in metronomic fashion, and lacked sufficient stage personality to make an effect. Don Alhambra (Peter Tatlow) sang and spoke totally without expression and gave one of the most boring performances I have seen for a long time. He seemed unable to reach either the top or bottom notes, or to stay in time with the orchestra. Inez (Jane Bellamy) sang her small part with her eyes glued on the conductor, who led her into every musical phrase. Antonio (Alan Forster) tried very hard, but couldn't conquer a tendency to sing flat. MICHAEL WALTERS

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