South African director Nicholas Ellenbogen ensures an authentic feel to the animals that crowd the opening scene of this new chamber opera. Accurate gait from the chorus members of Edinburgh Studio Opera - carrying signifying horns, ears or tails according to the animal - provides a delightful visual starting point.
It’s simple stuff, reflecting the simplicity of the rest of this project. Alexander McCall Smith’s central idea is that the matrilineal baboons of the Okavango Delta in Botswana exhibit Lady Macbeth’s murderously ambitious traits. After a spot of local creation myth, a trio of primatologists observe a troop of baboons, discovering with glee that evil exists even here.
Among the baboons, the main soloists acquit themselves reasonably well. Beth Mackay’s slight frame belies a gorgeous voice for the obviously ambitious Lady Macbeth, with Lucinda Stuart-Grant clear of voice as her friend. Ronan Busfield’s Macbeth is clearly not up to the job of king, driven to murder Andrew McTaggart’s easy and powerful alpha male, Duncan, and pin it on a passing leopard.
Not that they have a lot to work with in Tom Cunningham’s score. Redolent of English church music, with a couple of Lloyd Webber-ish soaring melodies and the odd calypso rhythm stirred into the easy mix, this is not going to challenge. Nor, however, does it give much to stir the cockles, even with Mr McFall’s Chamber providing the band.
McCall Smith’s libretto has lovely moments, but the big concept is too slight. As one primatologist observes: “There are no tragedies in nature, only events, things that happen.”
Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, April 20-21
Production information can change over the run of the show.
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