Review: The Marriage of Figaro, The Cockpit

“An opera? You are going to see an opera?” Yes, that was very much the shocked response when I informed people of my theatre plans for the evening. But let me explain. In an effort to get our reviewers to try new things, we occasionally play a little game of Reviewer Roulette. You give a date you are free, and someone else picks a show for you. And to be fair, this was not the show on our invitation list that scared me the most! So that’s how I found myself at my first ever opera. Of course, being part of Camden Fringe, it was never going to be the type that requires you to get out your finest jacket or gown. No, this is meant to be accessible opera, produced for a fringe audience. But still, I was a bit nervous about what I had let myself in for.

Things start well. There’s a playfulness as the maid Susanna (a personal favourite performance from Rebecca Milford) and Cherubino (Alexandra Dinwiddie) dance around the bed chamber, accompanied by some glorious live piano. When they started to sing, however, things went awry. Not on stage – they sounded and looked great, but it’s in Italian and someone had gone wild with the smoke machine, making the surtitles utterly illegible. At this point, I decided to just relax in my seat, enjoy the singing and try to piece together what’s going on. As I later discovered, it does mean I had no idea that the woman who kept hiding under the bed sheets was, in fact, playing a male character, which would explain why they kept hiding! But the playfulness of the scene and that delightful singing still meant I was being kept entertained.

Luckily, after about 15 minutes and someone frantically trying to turn the smoke machine off, the haze cleared and, wonder upon wonder, the words were finally legible. It’s amazing how knowing what they are singing about can assist in understanding what on earth is going on. Plus, you realise the surtitles are not a strict translation, rather a comic slant on the words; I’m sure “tosser” wouldn’t have been in the original work!

The Marriage of Figaro, or at least this shortened version by Opera Kipling, is very much a good old-fashioned farce. It’s all mistaken identities, jealousy, hiding under bed sheets and finding out the woman who is demanding you marry her is actually your mother… ok, that last one perhaps isn’t so common. This could be an Ealing comedy if it weren’t for all that singing in Italian. After the dodgy start, they do just what they set out to do, creating an opera performance that is easily accessible for the complete novice, such as this reviewer. 

The simple set of a bed sat centre stage is ample in allowing us to understand what’s happening as actors move around, on and even under it. It’s perfect for the close of Act Two when six performers stand three a side facing off as they sing at one another. Even without always knowing what they are singing about, it’s still an incredible moment to savour the pure power of song. A little more thought on the closing act might assist in clarifying who is meant to be whom, with many cases of mistaken identity at play, but again, the playfulness of it wins out. 

As first opera experiences go, it’s not a bad introduction. Would I go again? Not for a full three-hour performance, but I could be tempted by another 90-minute effort. Less smoke next time though please. 

Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Directed by Benjamin Schilperoort
Musical Director Giannis Giannopoulos
Lighting Design by Pablo Fernandez Baz

Read more about Opera Kipling’s Marriage of Figaro in our recent interview.

The Marriage of Figaro will play at the Cockpit Theatre until Saturday 9 August
and then at Upstairs at the Gatehouse Saturday 16 & Sunday 17 August