"SCHUMANN AND BRITTEN - LOVE AND WAR"

Tasman Soloists

Art Song Canberra

Wesley Music Centre, Forrest

February 26

 

Reviewed by Len Power

 

A program contrasting love and war with the work of composers Robert Schumann and Benjamin Britten resulted in a memorable, if at times, demanding concert.

The Tasman Soloists are Kent McIntosh, tenor, Robert Johnson, horn, Sharolyn Kimmorley, piano and Rob Wilton, speaker. All of them have an impressive list of past credits and together they proved to be exceptional.

The program commenced with Schumann’s ‘Adagio and Allegro for horn and piano’. The first part was quiet and romantic and then the second part exploded with passion. It was played very well by Kimmorley on piano and Johnson on the horn. It was a great work to open the concert.

Kent McIntosh then sang Schumann’s Liederkreis Opus 39.  An imposing man, McIntosh sang the first two parts with great feeling and delicacy, then startled with the power of his voice in the finale of the third part, ‘Dialogue In The Woods’. His fine performance was also notable for the way he maintained the feeling of the songs during piano interludes. The intention of each song was clear and performed with honest emotion as well as a strong technical ability.

Kimmorley’s accompaniment to this song cycle was very impressive, bringing out all the sentiment and emotion in the music.

The major work of the second half of the program was Britten’s ‘The Heart Of The Matter’. First performed in 1956, the Edith Sitwell poems were read by Rob Wilton, a Canberran teacher who studied history and politics at the ANU and University of Sydney. His readings of the poems were nicely down to earth and made an instant connection with the audience.

From left: Rob Wilton (speaker), Sharolyn Kimmorley (piano), Kent McIntosh (tenor) and Robert Johnson (horn) 

McIntosh demonstrated an amazing breath control and clarity with the sung parts of this vocally demanding work. His singing of the Canticle part, ‘Still Falls The Rain’, was haunting. In addition, the piano accompaniment by Kimmorley and the fanfares on the horn by Johnson added another dimension to this extraordinary work.

Refreshingly, after the demanding ‘The Heart Of The Matter’, McIntosh sang three English folk songs. His long experience in opera was clearly demonstrated with his ability to breathe life and character into these songs. ‘The Oak and the Ash’ was particularly well sung. The piano and horn accompaniment was excellent.

The concert finished with McIntosh’s beautiful singing of the well-known aria,‘Oh, is there not one maiden breast’, from the Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, ‘The Pirates of Penzance’.

 

Photo by Peter Hislop

This review was first published by Canberra CityNews digital edition on 27 February.

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

DOWNTOWN: THE MOD MUSICAL

Created by Phillip George, David Lowenstein and Peter Charles Morris

Directed by Anita Davenport

Musical Director: Tara Davidson

Queanbeyan Players

Belconnen Community Theatre to 5 March

 

Reviewed by Len Power 24 February 2023

 

The Swinging Sixties offered a large number of songs that still conjure up that era and “Downtown: The Mod Musical” covers an impressive range of them.  As someone who was a teenager then, it was good to hear them all again.

Set in London between the early 1960s and 1970, the show follows the lives of five different women, represented here by different colours.  Issues affecting their lives are shown in the linking material between songs.  While the era is seen as “swinging”, day to day problems still remained.  Generational conflict, early romance, marriage and deciding whether to conform or not were still big issues.  The media told us that the era was “swinging” but that was in faraway London.  We were just busy getting through our teenage years.

On a bright and colourful set designed by Steve Galinec, reminiscent of television variety shows of the time, the show is bright and cheerful and the songs come thick and fast.  Director, Anita Davenport, keeps it all moving quickly and Laurenzy Chapman has given the show a huge amount of choreographed movement that is true to the period.  Helen McIntyre’s colourful costumes look good on the cast.

Hannah Lance, Sarah Hull, Kay Liddiard, Alexandra McLaughlin and Emily Pogson

The five main women – Alexandra McLaughlin, Kay Liddiard, Emily Pogson, Hannah Lance and Sarah Hull – perform the songs and moves with lots of energy and enthusiasm.  Some of the singing was uneven but there were a number of highlights including Hannah Lance’s “One Two Three” and Sarah Hull’s “Son Of A Preacher Man”.

The additional four girl chorus of Anna Tully, Hannah Miller, Carly Carter, Jess Zdanowicz and Kirsten Smith provided strong backup to the five featured performers.  Tina Meir did the voice overs and was funny in her brief cameo as the Gwendoline Holmes “Agony Aunt” columnist.

Musical director, Tara Davidson, and her three member band did a fine job but the sound by Katniss Stellar (Eclipse) seemed to be designed for the Bruce Stadium, not the intimate Belconnen Theatre.  It was too loud, too heavy on the bass and there were instances of feedback that should not be happening.  This was supposed to be the “60s” sound, not the sound of rock concerts of today.

“Downtown” is a fun and colourful show that showcases the good songs of those ten years of “Swinging 60s”.  The enthusiastic company make it an enjoyable, undemanding night out.

 

Photo supplied by the company

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

CHOPIN'S BIRTHDAY CONCERT

Friends of Chopin

All Saints Church, Ainslie 19 February

 

Reviewed by Len Power

As well as celebrating composer, Fryderyk Chopin’s, birthday, the Friends of Chopin were celebrating their return after three years of hibernation due to Covid.  Their program of works by Mozart and, of course, Chopin included a new work commissioned three years ago from pianist, Penelope Thwaites.  There were three high calibre performers, including Thwaites herself, Kirsten Williams, violin, and Patrick Suthers, cello.  It really was a celebration to the power of ”3”.

Kirsten Williams (violin), Penelope Thwaites (piano) and Patrick Suthers (cello)

The concert began with Mozart’s Piano Trio No. 3 in B Flat.  Composed in 1786 it is performed on piano, violin and cello in three movements.  The first movement was notable for its brightness and the second was reflective with beautiful melodies.  The brightness returned with the third movement and finished dramatically.  The trio played it delightfully.

Penelope Thwaites then played Chopin’s Ballade No. 2 in F Major.  Composed in 1839, the quiet opening passages led into a dramatic section full of emotion and then subsided into a delicate and sensitive ending.  Thwaites played it superbly.

Elements of this ballade and music from the ballet “Les Sylphides” inspired Thwaites’ writing of the commissioned work “Mazurka: Au Tombeau de Chopin”.  Her skilful composing produced a highly satisfying work that started quietly with the cello and led into a dramatic passionate dance full of emotion.  It ended as quietly as it had begun.  This memorable work proved to be the highlight of the concert.

The final work presented was Chopin’s Piano Trio In G minor.  Published in 1829, it was the first time Chopin included a violin in his work.  It starts dramatically and has a beautiful third movement full of emotion leading to an ending full of brightness.  Played very well by the trio, it was the perfect end to a fine concert.

 

Photo by Peter Hislop

This review was first published by Canberra CityNews digital edition on 20 February.

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

 

AT DINNER (PLAY)

 

Written by Rebecca Duke

Directed by Holly Johnson

ACT Hub Theatre, Kingston to 11 February

 

Reviewed by Len Power 9 February 2023

 

Part of the ACT Hub’s Development Program, “At Dinner” is the world premiere of a new play by emerging playwright, Rebecca Duke.

At a restaurant, a young couple meet for dinner after spending some time apart.  They seem ill at ease and their conversation is decidedly awkward.  As the evening progresses, their waitress is unwittingly drawn into this couple’s complex power games.

The strength of this new work is in the dialogue and character development, which mostly captures the subtleties of these complex young people.  The dialogue for the girl, Anna, is particularly well done, leaving us puzzled by and interested in what is motivating her behaviour.  The young man’s dialogue gives the feeling of a person out of his depth and desperately trying hard to make the evening a success.  There is, maybe, too much awkwardness in the dialogue for his character early in the play.

Thea Jade gives a strong, unnerving performance as Anna.  Timothy Cusack is also fine as Eden.  The waitress was well-played by Nakiya Xyrakis.

Thea Jade as Anna

Having the auditorium set up as a restaurant with tables created the right ambiance but the young couple’s table placed at a higher level on the stage made it less involving than if they had been down at auditorium level amongst the other “patrons”.  This had worked fine with ACT Hub’s last production, “The Importance Of Being Earnest”.  The noise of the waitress’s footsteps while walking around amongst the audience’s tables was distracting at times.

One plot point did not ring true.  It seemed unlikely and unprofessional that a waitress in a reasonably classy restaurant like this would invite only the girl, in front of her partner, to drinks with the waitress’s friends afterwards.  Maybe the girl should be the one to ask the waitress if she could join them?

The director, Holly Johnson, has given this play the right amount of light and shade in the interaction between the characters in a restricted setting.  It also runs at a good pace.

The ending of the play is a surprise.  Whether it’s the ending the audience member wants will probably vary from person to person.  It’s certainly unexpected.

Emerging playwright, Rebecca Duke, has done a fine job overall here and it will be interesting to see how her work progresses in the future.

Photo supplied by the production.

This review was first published in Canberra City News digital edition on 10 February. 

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.