The Stage

Bernada Alba

Published Friday 26 August 2011 at 11:04 by Jennifer Reischel

Fiddler on the Roof set in thirties Spain? Not quite - the current theatrical offering at the Union proves rather more ominous.

Emily Jane Morris, Rebecca Trehearn, Amelia Adams Pearce, Beverley Klein, Soophia Foroughi and Sophie Juge in Bernada Alba at the Union Theatre, London Photo: Sherry Coenen

Recently widowed Bernada Alba is left to head her household of five grown-up daughters who are fighting for the right to choose their own path in life. Michael John LaChiusa’s 2006 complex chamber opera-style score weaves through - sometimes brutally - candid dialogue based on the play of a similar name by Garcia Lorca.

As each woman expresses her inner desires in song, we are taken on a journey of psychological and sexual repression - with dangerous consequences. Katherine Hare’s direction is brave and bold, complemented by choreographer Racky Plews, who winningly tailors traditional Spanish footwork to the musical theatre genre.

Beverly Klein gives a gut-wrenchingly earthy performance - intensely watchable and vocally flawless - as she howls and growls through the multifacets of this matriarch. Amelia Adams-Pearce as the youngest daughter, Adela, is a feisty presence, while Sophie Juge as the eldest, Angustias, is believably raw and fragile. Excellent singing from Rebecca Trehearn as Martirio and a suitably calm, yet edgy demeanour from Soophia Foroughi as Magdalena are commendable, though Emily-Jane Morris seems rather too English and quaint for this piece. A thought-provoking and admirably executed timeless tale of human complexity.