Verdi's La Traviata

After a five-year stint in Islington, OperaUpClose returns to Kilburn, where it first sprang to notice with an innovative pub-theatre ‘La Bohème’ in 2009. The company has now moved up to The Tricycle, reviving its English-language version of Verdi’s tale of the tart with a heart: Violetta, a high-class courtesan who is persuaded by her lover’s father, Germont, to separate from his son for the sake of his daughter’s reputation.
In the title role of ‘The Fallen Woman’, soprano Louisa Tee turns in another exemplary performance as Violetta. She originally trained as an actor and it shows; her dramatic skills are matched with a powerful and flexible voice. Her aria ‘Go To Your Daughter’ is particularly touching.

There’s a reason why good tenors are the highest-paid singers on an opera stage, so rare they seem. Unfortunately, as Violetta’s lover Alfredo, Robin Bailey is not among their number – offering poor intonation and graceless portamento. There are no such problems with James Harrison’s Germont. His smooth and resonant baritone is captivating and as a relatively young singer, he brings enough gravitas to the role to carry off the supposed age difference with the other characters.

Director Robin Norton-Hale has worked hard on achieving a naturalistic approach in this 1920s American setting, although the American angle is fussy, particularly as the accent is not consistently reflected in the singing or recitative – why not just set it in London? Katie Bellman’s set designs, however, are tidy and practical, and the inclusion of a gramophone playing jazz in Act II is a fun touch.