INDEPENDENT OPERA at Sadler's Wells

The Sofa and The Departure

Reviews

The Telegraph

Maconchy: a gritty and powerful legacy

By Geoffrey Norris

'...Independent Opera fielded a strong young vocal ensemble, decked out by costume designer Ryszard Andrzejewski in the fantastic clothes of today’s party crowd, and moving around Madeleine Boyd’s smart, funky set with fluent nonchalance...'

'...[The Departure’s] eeriness and it’s fusion of grief and love are underlined by Maconchy’s blend of gritty and powerfully poetic music, further emphasized here by the grey-coloured set and shrouded furniture, and by the sympathetic singing and characterisation of both protagonists...'

'...Marking the centenary of Maconchy's birth, these two productions showed the bold Independent Opera at its best, with conductor Dominic Wheeler and a compact instrumental group wholly at one with the cast and with the contrasting moods that the operas evoke...'

'...Perfectly tailored to the singing voice and expertly judged in terms of length, both pieces attested to a dramatic intuition that is an all-too-rarely heard part of Maconchy's hidden legacy...'