Seems that I'm in a minority here for actually liking the production, and I don't revere the play. In fact I don't really revere a lot of Shakespeare's plays - sometimes they're OK, sometimes not. Yet for me, this operatic production was gripping and whether the words were by Shakespeare or not (in fact many of them were) I found it considerably more palatable than having to sit through hours of actors mouthing off at each other.
Oh yes - someone mentioned it - it was in fairly modern dress, but I really didn't notice, and I really didn't care. I have seen the play in some form of period costume many years ago, but that was not particularly memorable. I have seen other period plays (mostly Shakespeare) in different forms, and quite a number in modern dress. Sometimes it is fairly light touch, and the costumes aren't a problem, though I find other updating, such as substituting armoured vehicles for horses, machine guns instead of swords etc. rather unnerving.
There was also mention of and comparisons with British composers, but Brett Dean was and perhaps still is, Australian, I think.
So I enjoyed it anyway - now more than once, and I hope to enjoy it again when I get round to watching the recorded version.
Oh yes - someone mentioned it - it was in fairly modern dress, but I really didn't notice, and I really didn't care. I have seen the play in some form of period costume many years ago, but that was not particularly memorable. I have seen other period plays (mostly Shakespeare) in different forms, and quite a number in modern dress. Sometimes it is fairly light touch, and the costumes aren't a problem, though I find other updating, such as substituting armoured vehicles for horses, machine guns instead of swords etc. rather unnerving.
There was also mention of and comparisons with British composers, but Brett Dean was and perhaps still is, Australian, I think.
So I enjoyed it anyway - now more than once, and I hope to enjoy it again when I get round to watching the recorded version.
Comment