[concert] Orpheus Britannicus -- The Dance of the Hearts (Cadogan Hall, 18.09.09)

[tamaranth]

Mercurius Company: Orpheus Britannicus – The Dance of the Hearts

A masque (lots of dancing, some singing) loosely woven around Purcell's music and some typically Baroque plot elements (evil spirits! kindly sorcerer-king! shepherds! mermaids! storms at sea!) Highlights for me were 'No Stars Again Shall Hurt You' (from The Tempest); Venezuelan baritone Emiliano Barragán Géant as Grimbald (that man has an impressive glower and considerable presence); 'Two Daughters of this Ancient Stream' (from King Arthur, but much enlivened by being sung by mermaids); the Witches' scene from Dido and Aeneas.

Some of the costumes would have benefitted from application of the 'KEEP IT SIMPLE' rule; some of the wigs had a topiary quality. There were times when the sound wasn't great (though it turned out that part of the problem was our official seats, off to one side in the gallery: sound much better from the back, and it was also easier to make sense of the ballet). But it felt like Baroque theatre, and was fun and frivolous and melodious and very enjoyable.

Gripe: audience seemed wholly unengaged, there was little applause.

Mercurius Company, a musicians', singers' and dancers' cooperative specialising in "the performance and research of the Early Music & Dance, embracing in its repertoire works from the Baroque and Pre-Classical periods."
And they have a YouTube channel, with a trailer for 'Orpheus Britannicus' (though I don't think the music matches)

Comments

[geekmama.livejournal.com]

Heavens, that sounds like SO much fun (except for the unengaged audience, wtf??) -- maybe they'll come over here and do a performance at the Getty (which likes to schedule groups that do music from the same periods as their art collection). It could happen!

Thank you for the youtube link, btw. So much fun!

[desperance.livejournal.com]

These days, as like as not, when I come out of a theatre it's the audience I'm reviewing complaining about. But I'd rather have little applause than bloody clapping in time...