I discovered that there were likely to be unsold tickets for this afternoon’s matinee so, confident that I wouldn’t be depriving any serious Donizetti lovers of scarce seats I went to the Philharmonic Hall for the opening of the box office at noon.  It was the first day of 2008, year of culture; but I saw few signs of this in central Liverpool – unless you could the usual people wondering round still cultured as newts from last night. 

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the performance.  I wouldn’t normally go to see Don Pasquale or Lucia di Lammermoor if you gave me a free ticket so my inclination, if anything, would be to the negative side.  I was, it must be said, attracted by the venue, St George’s Hall, and the concert room of that hall did, indeed, provide a gorgeous setting.

It’s a very small place to stage an opera (I’d be surprised if there are as many as 300 seats) so the staging was rather unconventional.  The orchestra (also small – about 30 players) was on the stage which meant it was several feet above the action, which took place in the round with the audience close enough to touch (indeed there were a couple of interactive gimmicks which added to the entertainment value).   

To answer Andy’s question about the set – there wasn’t one! Well, that’s not strictly true; but I’ve often seen semi-staged productions with more scenery and props.  Both acts were staged around the gravestone & monument to Emilia’s mother; and apart from a few portable props and nineteenth century dress that was it.  As for the mountains above Liverpool: well, I’m not even convinced the setting was meant to be Liverpool.  The title comes from the eponymous heroine and her father Claudio di Liverpool but I think the action takes place near London.

I had a little difficulty reading the ‘surtitles’ (two identical screens either side of the stage as opposed to the traditional location above the action) but that might be my eyesight finally fading.  Some of the translations were idiosyncratic but I think that might have been for comic effect.  Examples, from memory: “I’m so depressed; I’m losing it”  “With a girl and a horse nature must take its course”  and, my favourite, “you’re a beautiful girl, would you like some cake” (Leslie Phillips eat your heart out!).

The young singers did very well in my opinion – though I freely confess I’m not really conversant with this style.  The orchestra and chorus were also impressive.  I didn’t come away humming any tunes – the music, to my ear, was very much ‘Now That’s What I Call Bel Canto Vol xxxx’ – but the overall effect was most enjoyable.  Not least because the enthusiasm of all the performers was infectious.  I wonder, also, whether the intimate setting was more to my liking than it would be for real bel canto fan.

Overall I must recommend this to anyone who can get to any of the four remaining performance.  Apparently it’s going to Bremen and Gdansk, too, but it finishes its Liverpool run on Saturday.  I was lucky enough to go on the one day that tickets were really cheap but even at the standard price I’d say it was good value.  There’s an excellent programme at a very reasonable £2 (I picked up a spare one in case you don’t get to see a performance, Ruth) and drinkable coffee at £1 a cup so you won’t spend a fortune on peripherals as at, say the ROH.

Considerably more than one laugh Don B.  It was great fun but, as I said, I'm not sure how much of that would come across in a less intimate setting.  A good one for TV, perhaps?

Glad you enjoyed Emilia di Liverpool H. I first heard mention of the "mountains outside Liverpool" when I went to hear my favourite stand-up comedian/concert pianist Kenneth Hamilton in October. He was talking about the romantic view that European composers had of Britain in the 19th century - Mendelssohn was another good example. I suppose having no set at all gets round the problem of having to place it in an alpine village - but then who takes the plots of most 18th/19th century operas seriously anyway?

Ah, I'm a bit disappointed to say I don't recognise a single name on the list

I know a few of the chorus and I know a couple of the orchestra too; who is running this outfit (EOC) now?

Well, they all knew you, Ruth! Seriously, though, they're mostly quite young.  I quote from the programme:  "The Centre's principal aim is to help young Europeans from education and their initial professional experiences to more secure and better quality employment in opera"  If I had to bet I'd say there's probably plenty of work for Marc Canturri (who really shone) and Francesca Park.  But I have to add the caveat that I know very little about this repertoire.


I don't really know roslyn.  I can list the technical & management teams for this performance if it's of interest to you.


Well tbf her dad's an ex-god and her suitor's a major league deity so we are sort of prepared for such an eventuality.  You'll see from my little write up of Daphne that I thought the way the ending was handled in the Amsterdam production was even dafter than the plot itself.  They could have just had her chatting to Prince Charles or something plausible like that!

Here you go:

Director – Ignacio Garcia
Assistant Director – Zulima Memba Olmo
Designer – Elisabetta Pian


Company Stage Managers – Gilles Rico; Clive Chenery
Deputy Stage Manager – Kate Astbury
Technical Manager – Jack James
Wardrobe Manager – Natalie Bosworth
Orchestra Managers – Carys Williams; Rachel Besbrode; Nick Lander