JADAR

★★★★☆

Ruddigore, or The Witch’s Curse, is a melodramatic comic opera teeming with absurdity and sharp wit. Written by Gilbert and Sullivan, the piece was first performed in 1887 and adapted by Opera North in 2010. Despite being one of the duo’s lesser-known pieces, its charm and eccentrics make it a show like no other. Its characters are hilariously paradoxical and exaggerated, the music never ceases to entertain, and its dark, classical comedy is still surprisingly endearing.

The supernatural comedy explains that the Murgatroyd family is cursed to commit a crime everyday or face a horrible and agonising death. We follow the noble and shy Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd (Dominic Sedgwick), who faked his death and adopted a new identity to escape his fate as the bad Baronet of Ruddigore, a title that falls upon his brother, Despard Murgatroyd (John Savournin).

A spat with his lusty sailor foster brother Richard “Dick” Dauntless (Xavier Hetherington) over the charming and moral Rose Maybud (Amy Freston), outs his identity as the true shunned and accursed baronet. Ever the opportunist, Rose drops the social façade and looks for the next available man of wealth to marry, oscillating from man to man and spurning Ruthven’s persona.

The music provides a ranged catalogue from typical opera duets, villainous fast-paced monologues with comedic interjections, nonsense tongue-twisters, spooky solemn warnings, chirpy romanticism, a quirkily choreographed mad duet, lyrics that satirise old and current politics, and even a surprisingly familiar pompous nautical number. We flitter between spoken dialogue and toe-tapping opera performances seamlessly (both are in English with assisting subtitles).

The stunning sets by Richard Hudson transport us effortlessly from bedroom to village, mansion to church, and have an underlying sense of antiquity.

The 2010 production’s director Jo Davies translated the original Napoleonic setting to the 1920s with efficiency, focusing on silent films, cartoonish villains, perfectly pairing with its cutting social parody. An opening silent movie with jittering projection introduces us to the previous bad baronet Roderic (Steven Page) and his doomed relationship with Dame Hannah (Claire Pascoe). Furthering this are the classy garments, decorative language and that typical tea-stained brown aesthetic on every picture and a romantic park backdrop.

The most impressive set piece was certainly the mansion. Its immense perspective warping wooden walls, the tiger rug and the fiendishly imposing portraits of the Murgatroyd ancestors – such an enthrallingly detailed and immersive space.

Additionally, the illusions by Paul Kieve in this scene were surprisingly spine-chilling – for a moment, I thought I was watching a horror show before the A Christmas Carol-like party of ghosts graced the stage and disappeared before our eyes. Hauntingly lit behind their painting counterparts, the set comes to life as corrupt clergymen, ruthless judges, and ghostly soldiers break free of their frames, dangling from ropes and jumping across the set in the ominous (yet suitably cheesy) ‘Painted Emblems of a Race’ and ‘When the Night Wind Howls’. 

Savournin’s performance as the moustachioed, cape-twirling baron is electrifying. He first jumps from the Punch and Judy-esque puppet show, spooking the bridesmaids and local men with his fiendish persona. His dark make-up, gaunt appearance, goofy moustache, and exaggerated (and outlandishly unpredictable) physicality completely steal the show. He’s charming and suave yet hilariously dubious and sneaky as any silent movie villain should be. This baron exudes mischief alongside the equally mad and contagiously giggly Mad Margaret (Helen Evora). 

In contrast, his comedically “pathetic” brother, whose crimes barely count and are ridiculed mercilessly by the Murgatroyd ancestors, is his complete opposite (a foil, if you will). Sedgwick captures that quirky awkwardness as the ‘failure’ younger brother, catching his cape in doors, cowering, and coming up with ill-conceived plots that are consistently “foiled”. He looks so hilariously engulfed by his brother’s cape and adopts the same crazy moustache, trying to mirror his wickedness yet stumbling at every hurdle.

While the first act initially felt a little slow-paced, the action and hilarity soon picks up, and the final scene moves surprisingly quickly, resolving the family curse dilemma, Roderick’s death, and Rose’s marriage woes in a matter of minutes. It sounds absurd but perfectly ties together the random and quick-paced story. Past lovers are warmly reunited as Roderic’s tough exterior melts with Hannah’s intimate nicknames and warm rendition of ‘There Grew a Little Flower’.

The curse is countered when Ruthven reasons that his uncle could not have died from the curse since his suicide counted as his daily crime. Meanwhile, Rose and Ruthven are reunited, Dick swiftly moves on to the next lass, and loyal servant Old Adam (Henry Waddington) maniacally laughs in the caped villain attire – just another random sprinkle of fun. Like the fast-tempo ‘patter’ songs, we swiftly move through the nonsense comedy and storylines without feeling clunkily concluded.

Ruddigore is a masterclass in comedy and melodrama with a phant-astically crafted set, a hilarious cast of talented actors and singers, a frustratingly catchy score, a fascinating supernatural twist, and the most outrageous opera story I’ve come across to date. It’s gothic, mischievous, witty and inventive. What an unruly yet endearing operatic experience

Ruddigore is still playing so no need to go to all the way to “Basingstoke”!

Opera North’s Ruddigore (Gilbert & Sullivan) tours the UK until November 21.

Photo: Richard H Smith