Girl, maiden, mom, crone.
Women have been depressingly outlined as such all through the ages. Moving between magical realism and actuality, and taking Grimm’s fairy tales, principally Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Snow White and Hansel & Gretel as their inspiration. Jane Davidson and Karen MacIver’s RED goals to “bring a new lens to recognisable characters and themes.” With Director Flora Emily Thomson, designer Finlay McLay and conductor Chris Gray, they make “the patriarchal scaffolding and moving goalposts that Red (and women in general) have to negotiate, visible and tangible.”
The 75 minute opera contains 4 acts. The first rewrites Red Riding Hood, Red is now an orphan who looking for a kindred spirit, finds a fox within the woods. She then imagines she is a liked granddaughter travelling by the woods to see granny. The large unhealthy wolf is, in fact, on her tail. The second sees a younger, pregnant girl trapped in a excessive rise block that’s being consumed by hearth. Her fire-fighter rescuer the estranged father of her unborn child. In the third act Red is now the CEO of the world’s greatest beauty firm, however she’s ageing and her teenage eco-campaigning daughter has uncovered some lower than moral practises. Just how far is Red keen to go to make sure the survival of her empire? The remaining act sees an aged Red after years wandering the world looking for redemption for her previous actions.
The collected tales of the Brothers Grimm are wealthy fodder and RED exhibits that this materials could be made related and relatable a century and a half later. The work has been created for the about to be defunct, Scottish Opera Young Company, and it tackles tough and controversial subject material with out patronising or sanitising it for the younger singers.
There is greater than a whiff of Stephen Sondheim right here and there are apparent parallels in supply materials between Red and Into the Woods, however the similarities go additional, as musically this can be very paying homage to the grasp’s works. That stated, it’s exceptionally gratifying, and an actual deal with for the ears.
The Young Company Ensemble are superb in refrain and fill the area fantastically and harmoniously. The principals present a lot potential however it’s El Rose because the Mysterious Woman and Ilona Sofia Nastase in quite a lot of roles who shine brightest, out-singing and appearing their friends.
Red is the right work to showcase the abilities of those opera stars of the long run and an actual winner of an opera in itself. Hopefully it gained’t be lengthy earlier than we’re handled to extra works by Davidson and MacIver.
