It is a sorry situation when central London theatres are full of 70s revival musicals rehashing the same songs night after night, yet space cannot be found for a week's run by a company such as British Youth Opera. Happily the company have now returned to a West End theatre, the recently refurbished Peacock, and their profile should rise a notch higher next February, when their performance will mark the operatic christening of the Royal Opera House's newly built Studio Theatre.
What makes this company different for its singers, most of whom are postgraduate vocal students about to begin their careers, is its Link Scheme. Performers are trained individually by A-list professionals who have experience of their particular role. Luxon, Allen, Tomlinson - the benefits of learning stagecraft from such legends must be immense.
Verdi's Falstaff was performed in English, James Rutherford singing the title role with aplomb. Opera North have booked him for a debut appearance next spring, and good for them: he has tone, character, control and projection and should be an asset. Of a generally strong cast, Marianne Vidal impressed as Alice Ford, as did Sally Matthews as Nanetta and Garrie Davislim as Fenton. Will Bowen's set, a solid construction of galleries and stairways framing the stage, allowed for action on several levels, and director Jamie Hayes worked the movement around these nicely.
Timothy Dean conducted a more precise orchestra, with tauter pit-to-stage ensemble than was heard at the previous night's Barber of Seville - but then, a couple of performances had already given Falstaff the chance to get into its stride.
Despite some occasionally scrappy orchestral playing, the first night of Rossini's Barber, an opera that can drag on for ever, sped by. Conductor Charles Peebles kept the pace up, but the credit must go to the principals and the director, Netia Davan Wetton. Nodding to Peter Sellars's "kitchen sink" Mozart (the basic Falstaff set being transformed with a few chrome railings into Bartolo's tacky apartment), her style of direction treads the fine line between innovation and gimmickry with refreshing confidence.
Victoria Simmonds stood out, a smooth, developed, technically adept singer whose teenage Rosina was a proper little madam. Darren Abrahams's engaging Almaviva also deserves mention.
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