King's Head Theatre: Così fan tutte ★★★★

There are those who can enjoy La Traviata and La bohème multiple times in a year, but I’m one of those operagoers that can see Così fan tutte again and again. Why? Admittedly Don Giovanni, another of Mozart’s tremendous works, is one of my favourite operas and a lot of that has to do with the highly memorable and addictive music, as well as the hilarious narrative that caused a bit of a stir when it was first shown in 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna.

Considering it was written and performed in the late 1700s, some may argue that Mozart’s Così was ahead of its time, depicting would-be fiancées falling for new lovers on the same day their fiancés had been called away to war. It would be fair to say that today, where so-called freedom of speech and supposed gender equality exists, current directors wouldn’t be fazed about the way that women are depicted in this opera.

Così fan tutte translated from Italian means both 'School for lovers' or 'women are like that'. It would be unfair to suppose that ‘women are like that’ and, of course, Mozart or his librettist Da Ponte didn’t compose the opera to voice such opinion but some sources suggest that the young composer was writing against the backdrop of the French Revolution, in the final years of the Enlightenment era where rational and liberal thoughts were motivating creative minds, leading to vast new artistic innovations, including this one.

I’ve seen a variety of productions of Così - from the circus-styled extravaganza at the ENO, the Met Opera’s traditional staging and Opera Vera’s modern-day setting with a cameraman recording Don Alfonso charming a TV audience – and I’ve realised how fun, easily adaptable and versatile Così can be performed today.

Now, the King’s Head Theatre have concocted something far more original, which includes both Così as the opera and the play by Louis Nowra, an Australian comedy, as well. Sadly, due to time constraints, I wasn’t able to see the play but I can tell you that I was, more than, pleased with what I took from the opera alone.

Music director, Elspeth Wilkes plays Mozart's reduced score vividly on the piano. Director Paul Higgins sets his opera in a TV studio with digital screens, diary rooms, a security guard and a talk show host to propel the story forward. This hilarious opera follows the male lovers as they get into the cab laughing away outside the King’s Head Theatre Pub, having sealed a deal with the TV presenter, then the audience watch as their women cry. As they pretend to drive away to a false destination, the fiancés return secretly disguised as trendy, preppy types. Yet, the TV show is more of a reality show that is geared towards tearing up relationships for better entertainment value, false drama and cat fights like a typical Jerry Springer show. 


Baritone Steven East is rich in tone as the philosopher Don Alfonso, dressed in a tacky presenter’s suit, and he comes across as a manipulative TV star than a wise Socrates attempting to teach something new. The reality show tries to prove these male contestants wrong - that their fiancées aren't as loyal as they originally thought - at the expense of ruining their relationship and providing better TV ratings.

Caroline Kennedy recently sang the role of Despina in Opera Vera (click here), a few weeks before I had seen this production, where she gave a supremely confident performance. However, her depiction of Despina here is very different. Kennedy retains the same independent and liberal attitude compared to Dorabella and Fiordiligi, but she shows signs of previously being hurt by a loved one and is forced by the sleazy Don Alfonso to take part in the trickery game. Nonetheless, her different accents and singularly talented and silky smooth voice shouldn’t go unnoticed.

The other soloists also deserve credit. Laurence Panter as Ferrando is bright and enthusiastic, Jevan Mcauley as Guglielmo was incredibly impressive, having a way with charming the audience with his warm, deep voice. Ailsa Mainwaring is a skilled actress too and sung well, yet there were times where she sounded weaker than others.

And then there's Stephanie Edwards as Fiordligi. Not only does she exhibit a tenacious character, she has a stunning, sweet-toned voice and acting prowess that I haven’t seen in a young soprano at an early stage in her career before - she is a soloist I hope to see and hear again! So, if laughing, giggles, TV gimmicks and opera is what you're looking for, then here is it.

Così is showing on the 23rd, 25th, 27th, 29th, 31st March and the 2nd and 3rd of April. For more information and to purchase tickets please click here. http://www.kingsheadtheatre.com/

Opera Vera: Così fan tutte

(Photo from www.operavera.co.uk)

Whenever you're in the piazza of Covent Garden you pass a church that tends to be ignored, mostly due to the hustle and bustle of Central London, but Actors' Church is, in fact, a unique space for small-stage productions like Opera Vera's Così fan tutte which I was delighted to see on the Valentine's weekend. Not only did conductor, Philip Hesketh and the 10 musicians of the Opera Vera Players give an imaginative and sharp-witted performance, they managed to present the fine subtleties and characteristics inhabited by its hilarious fiancée-swapping plot in what was regarded as Mozart's most controversial opera.

For Opera Vera, they set their comedy in today’s cannot-live-without-my-smartphone world, by the coastal lines of the Italian sea. In the background, a scrolled down screen pans images of the Italian mountains alongside the beautiful coast, then on the left a cameraman sets up his gear for what could be a reality TV show. Queue camera! The charming philosopher, Don Alfonso (Håkan Vramsmo) glares into focus, quickly sorts out his hair and gives a cheeky smile that everyone in the audience can see on screen.

Ferrando (Tom Morss) and Guiglelmo (Peter Brooke) are our optimistic and adamant fiancés assured that their other halves Dorabella (Camilla Bull) and Fiordiligi (Susan Jiwey) would never stray into another man's arms, and so they bargain with Don Alfonso to their defence. This is where the camera came in and acted as a portal for these men to speak freely about their love gamble. Yet in this yoga, selfie laden, strawberry and creams, barbeques-at-the-ready universe, men dressed as if they had walked off a Middle-Eastern desert can still turn the righteous heads of fiancées.

With many excuses to laugh and giggle, there were a fabulously polished cast that revealed hidden talents I hadn't heard before. Tom Morss and Peter Brooke gave a comical performance as the strange men who pretended to poison themselves, in the name of love – of course! Morss firmly executed some serious singing, particularly when his character realises he might have been wrong about his lover, while Brooke gave a refined and terrific performance as an overly complacent Guiglielmo.

Susan Jiwey, as Fiordiligi, is a hidden gem whose voice shined throughout the halls. Clear and gracious, her voice rose high and had a dimension of sophistication that I hope to hear again in the near future. Camilla Bull's Dorabella likes to smash things on the food table and create a big mess. She also met the challenges of her role singing beautifully with Jiwey and Vramsmo in “Soave sia il vento". (It sounded so good, I had to close my eyes!)

And Caroline Kennedy was the feline Despina dressed like the ladies' PA, with a realistic outlook of men and women and of the belief that women should be as naughty as the opposite sex. I'm no stranger to Kennedy's voice and found it a pleasure to see and hear her again as the multilinguist witch doctor and clumsy notary.

James McOran-Campbell and Alexander Anderson-Hall's Così is a brilliant illustration of how classical operas framed in a modern settings can really work, and, indeed, be very relevant. Gender stereotypes aside, Mozart's opera eventually became popular by the 20th century and today - where both men and women can be mutually 'stupid' and it, really, isn't a big deal.

This production has ended. To find out more about Opera Vera, please go to their website (here), and follow them on Twitter on: @operavera (here).

Click here for Opera Danube's production of Orpheus in the Underworld, St John's Smith Square (here)

Click here for my review of Glyndebourne's 2015 Cinema Broadcast of Die Entfugrung Aus Dem Serail. (here).

For my review of Mozart's The Magic Flute at the Royal College of Music (2014) production. (here)