Mozart: Idomeneo ***
Buxton Festival, 8th July 2018
When Martin Kušej staged Idomeneo at the Royal Opera back in 2014, his use of a rubber shark to represent the sea monster in Mozart’s opera seria drew a fair amount of derision. Stephen Medcalf, in his new production for the Buxton Festival, avoids such a trap by turning the “pitiless monster” into the Cretan king’s mental turmoil, snarling and slavering, a monster of the mind. Given Paul Nilon’s central performance of great dramatic sincerity, it made for a powerful metaphor in a straightforward staging, even if vocal performances weren’t uniformly strong.
Paul Nilon (Idomeneo)
© Richard Hubert Smith
Read the full review on Bachtrack.