On the Town

23 April 2007 (Mon), ENO

A revival of ENO’s well-received production from last year. With an orchestra of 66 and a cast of 40-something, this was a major staging on a scale pretty much impossible in a Broadway theatre. (The ticket price reflected this at ￡76 or around $150.) The cast was a mixture of opera singers, ballet dancers and Broadway/West End actors, and choreographed in a combination of Broadway and classical dance. I hadn’t actually seen the show since a fantastic production back in Washington D.C. in the 1980s, one of my most memorable theatrical experiences ever, so I was watching closely.

The production was as big and brash as anyone could want for the most part, but there was a decisive shift in point of view that was a bit disconcerting if not entirely surprising. As usual with British productions of Broadway musical classics, the director imposed a “darker” vision on the material. Continue reading →