1 – 16 July
Verdi’s take on the Scottish play poses a challenge to any opera director. How do you engage sympathy for a protagonist who determines so quickly on regicide? In Shakespeare’s original, the hero endures a powerful battle with his conscience before his fateful decision. Verdi’s Macbeth appears to jump at the crown. His glorious duets with his wife belie the ugliness of their intentions, and it’s hard for an audience to connect to such unsympathetic protagonists. Another problem is Verdi’s treatment of the supernatural. Rather than a sinister shadow of reality, his chorus of witches sounds jauntily upbeat so that there is little sense of haunting or foreboding. Finally, so much happens in a short space of time that the audience barely has space for emotional engagement.
Director Karolina Sofulak confronts these problems with mixed results. A small stage such as Longborough’s calls for concentration of action and movement, but for much of the time the space is simply too crowded. This is not entirely the fault of the production. The opera demands large forces. But though the massed sound of ‘Patria Oppressa’ in the final act is profoundly stirring, it speaks more of 19th century Italy than medieval Scotland. Also, with so many singers on stage, it is often hard to distinguish nobles and courtiers from witches and prophetic spirits. The production can feel cluttered and confused. For example, the miniature puppet show at the start and end, a visual representation of the witches’ prophesies, is both cumbersome and unnecessary. Nor has the director found an effective solution to the perennial problem of Burnham Wood.
Having said all this, there are some great moments, as when Banquo rises from the grave to clutch Macbeth’s arm. Or when lighting is used to striking effect as the silhouettes of the doomed man’s murderers loom out of the darkness. John Molloy is outstanding in the part with a resonant bass that commands the stage even in his short appearance. The other virtuous character, Macduff, is equally impressive, with Jung Soo Yun rising to the occasion in a show-stopping rendering of the great tenor aria ‘O figli, O figlie miei’.
The evil characters have a more difficult task.
Viktoriia Balan brings vocal agility and a seductive physical presence to female lead. She’s wonderful to listen to though occasionally there’s a harsh edge to the timbre as if she’s taken to heart Verdi’s desire for his heroine to sound ‘rough and hollow’. Her psychological breakdown is an opportunity to connect with the audience, but she never quite loses her ice queen persona. Mark Stone as Macbeth, while vocally strong, never exhibits the emotional disintegration one might hope for. The couple are at their best in the early duets when it is possible to revel in the composer’s extraordinary interwoven melodies and forget that these two are planning murder.
Thus, this is an evening of highs and lows. One consistent high is the playing of the 62-piece orchestra under the youthful baton of Nil Venditti. It’s tempting just to close one’s eyes and listen rather than tussle with the confusion of the onstage drama.
★★★☆☆ Ros Carne 5 July 2026
Photographer’s credit @ Matthew Williams-Ellis
