It was a bold concept by director Roxana Haines to stage her version of Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex in the Grand Gallery of The National Museum of Scotland.
As a large classical amphitheatre space it ticked the boxes. As a successful venue for a staged production there were several niggles.
To begin with it was just too vast to hear everything clearly. And with action at either end of the gallery, and people milling around standing in front of each other, it was not possible to see everything clearly either.
This was a promenade performance, the audience and chorus encouraged to mill around interacting with one another. In truth it was Scottish Opera’s large community chorus that did most of the milling, while most of the audience found a vantage point and stayed there. Those who chose to go upstairs to the gallery had a better over all view of the action, joining a scattering of silent Greek Gods and Goddesses who surveyed the actions of mere humans from on high.
That the music was glorious there is no question. The Scottish Opera Orchestra under conductor Stuart Stratford sounded immense – they were seated on platforms where the museum’s fish ponds used to be. The glorious Scottish Opera chorus were clad in striking cream coloured tops with long black fringes on front and large black wings on the back. (A marketing opportunity there – I’d definitely wear one).
Shengzhi Ren and Kitty Whately were magnificent as Oedipus and Jocasta. Interesting but confusing was Wendy Seager as the narrator – why was she wearing jeans and a high vis vest? And why was she pushing a trolley of cleaning materials? Her interaction with the audience was good but at times, depending on location, she was indistinct.
So in all an interesting evening, crafted, innovative, but up against the practicalities that make breaking barriers so difficult.
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