Dido & Aeneas
Trojan Productions
Burton Taylor Theatre,
19-23.11.02

Another tiny show for a tiny venue. Purcell's mini-opera Dido and Aeneas is very simple, with a minimal cast and a gentle, lilting score, and although there's barely room for the actors once the harpsichord has been fitted in, the Burton Taylor is an ideal venue for such a small-scale work. The lack of elaborate scenery is compensated for by the concentrated plot and by Purcell's delightful music, and no gimmicks are needed to make the production enjoyable.

There is plenty of drama within the music, and the cast convey this very effectively through gesture and movement. Emily Johnston is initially a very demure Dido, but reveals great intensity of emotion in her rendition of 'When I am laid in earth', a true test for any performer. Cissie Fu creates a wonderfully scheming Sorceress, plotting the separation of the two lovers with great zest.

The players also work well in ensemble. A chorus of just four singers support the soloists as well as supplying Purcell's lovely dance-like chorus numbers. Despite some discrepancies in pitch the voices are well-matched and the performers animated, and are clearly enjoying the music.

If you somehow managed to walk into this production five minutes before the end, you might not find the sight of Dido, clad in black and wielding a syringe, a particularly approachable introduction to the world of opera, as the cast state they hope to present. However, these rather alarming final scenes shouldn't detract from the fact that this is a well-thought-out production that combines the best of the old and the new simply and sweetly.

O Rowland, 19.11.02