In the mid-1980s Opera Northern Ireland was formed out of a forced marriage of the Northern Ireland Opera Trust and the Studio Opera Group. It didn't take long, however, for rearguard action to result in Castleward Opera, a new outlet for individuals not wishing to sing to the tune of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland (ACNI), which had brought ONI into existence.
Two years ago, ACNI in its wisdom decided to de-fund ONI. So, today, the one-time rebels, who created a summer festival in a converted stable at Castle Ward House near Strangford, have the field all to themselves. As well as their "mini-Glyndebourne" (with a 90-minute, picnic interval), the now ACNI-supported Castleward provide a spring season in Belfast, with the Ulster Orchestra in the pit.
The Ulster Orchestra has never been available for Castleward's summer offerings, and in the early years the level of orchestral playing left a lot to be desired. Musical standards have improved considerably, and in many respects Martin Handly's shaping of the orchestral contribution to Flotow's Martha on Saturday came closer to the spirit of the music than anything heard from the stage proper.
In this tale of mis-firing aristocratic disguise, Fiona McAndrew's Lady Harriet met head-on the coloratura challenges of her role, but steadfastly avoided revealing either the vocal charm or engaging personality that were needed.
Juliet Norman's Nancy showed greater vivacity and warmth (a social comment on the personal superiority of the lower orders?), although, as the farming duo who both hire and love them, neither Jeffrey Stewart's Lionel nor Nicholas Todorovic's Plunkett got much beyond stagey yokelism.
Alan Fairs's resonant Sir Tristram came probably closest to the spirit of the production directed by Tom Hawkes and designed by Peter Rice in a style more frequently encountered in the illustrations of Opera magazine in the 1950s than on the operatic stages of today. It's a style which, rather than making Martha readily accessible makes it seem more than ever preposterous.
