Turandot

Leeds Town Hall

Friday 28th April 2017

Set in ancient Peking, Turandot is the vengeful eponymous Princess whose many suitors have been put to death because they failed to solve three riddles.

Following their critically acclaimed semi-staging of Wagner's Ring Cycle, Opera North have adopted a similar format for Turandot. Puccini's extravagant operatic swansong however poses an additional challenge in that the large chorus plays a significant crowd role in the unfolding drama. Director Annabel Arden's brilliant choreography of the 55 strong Chorus of Opera North neatly meets the challenge by transforming the body of singers into a baying crowd. The costumed principals, meanwhile, act out their emotions on the apron stage in front of the orchestra. Subtle directorial points include the memorable moment in which the plangent toned and shirtless Alexander Banfield as the condemned Prince of Persia suddenly pops up from the Chorus to sing his lines before disappearing to be 'beheaded'.

Arden's treatment of the 'Ice Princess' herself exposes Turandot's vulnerability when Rafael Rojas as Prince Calaf successfully solves the riddles and claims her as his Bride. Orla Boylan's distraught Turandot tosses aside her ceremonial robes and postrates herself on the floor. Rojas' burnished Nessun Dorma (None shall sleep) has both power and subtlety. Boylan's laser-like In Questa Reggia (In this Palace) soars at full throttle above the massive orchestra likewise playing at full throttle. Korean soprano Sunyoung Seo invests her warm lyric timbre with humanity in the beseeching aria Signore Ascolta (Lord, hear!). Scottish bass Alastair Miles exudes stentorian authority as the Tao tar King Timur. The Emporer Altoum's high notes lie comfortably within the range of veteran tenor Bonaventura Bottone. The Royal ministers Ping, Pang and Pong are wonderfully portrayed with icy clarity by Gavan Ring, Joseph Shovelton and Nicholas Watts. Identically patched suits and white face paint gives the snide trio a menacing aura.

Puccini's exotic modernist harmonies are realised by a 100 piece orchestra including a spectacular array of tuned gongs. The sheer power and majesty of Puccini's stunning music enveloped the audience but it is fair to state that the delicate Chinese effects were occasionally lost in this resonant space. The angelic voices drifting into the auditorium belonged to the Opera North Children's Chorus and pupils from Low Road Primary School, Hunslet. Conductor Sir Richard Armstrong unifies the disparate strands of this complex opera into a cohesive whole - indisputably a resounding triumph for the Leeds company. Turandot returns to Leeds Town Hall on 12th & 14th May.

Geoffrey Mogridge