Peter Grimes

Essentially English Grimes at La Scala
The main strength of Britten's Peter Grimes, and one of its main themes of course, is its essentially English character. That is challenged in two ways in this 2012 production of the opera. One is that it is performed at La Scala in Milan and not at Aldeburgh or somewhere more appropriate with a feeling for the vitally English smalltown seaside location of the work. The second challenge to the integrity of the work is that the period of the setting is somewhat inevitably updated to the near-present by director Richard Jones. In the event not only do neither of these choices prove detrimental to the piece, but they actually manage to bring something new and fresh out of the work. With an opera like Peter Grimes and the sensitive subjects and themes it touches on, that's exactly the kind of challenge and contemporary relevance you want to remind you of the importance of this work in the composer's centenary year.

You might expect that an English orchestra might be more...

Interesting and somewhat disturbing new Grimes
This new video of Britten's masterpiece opera "Peter Grimes" gives us an excellent performance from an all English cast in this 2012 La Scala production. The performances are wonderful. John Graham-Hall and Susan Gritton are exemplary as the troubled loner fisherman and his sympathetic soul mate, Ellen; also a bit of a lost soul. Montagu Slater's libretto, after the poem "The Borough" by George Crabbe, uses the metaphor of the old-fashioned, cantankerous Grimes in a small, gossipy fishing village to point out the tragedy of gossip veiled in religious hypocrisy. Contemporary designer Richard Jones' production places the story in a strange mid-1980s world where people go to church, but still find time to support the local brothels and pubs and dance studios (the scenes of some disco-type choreography instead of what was supposed to be barn dance are a bit hokey and distracting) The tragic sub-element in the story is Grimes' poor fortune with young boy "apprentices" who have run away,...

Excellent performance of a very difficult opera
The Opus Arte label has been putting out some wonderful operas on DVD, and this one is no exception. I had never seen Peter Grimes before, and the performances were excellent, keeping this viewer glued to the screen while watching Peter's downward spiral as he loses his second apprentice. The sets were definitely an asset to the story being told (updated somewhat for more modern times), and the tavern was on a moving structure that allowed it to tilt one way and then the other during the storm sequence. Everything had a "coastal" feel to it, which was a definite plus given the situations that the characters found themselves in.

With respect to the performances themselves, John Graham-Hall did a marvelous job, bringing just the right amount of edginess and unsettled feeling to Peter. Susan Gritton was fantastic as Ellen, obviously caring for Peter and believing in him - which is almost the only support Peter has. Kudos also go to the two nieces (Ida Falk Winland and...

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