Viva Lewes Issue #126 March 2017

ON THIS MONTH: MUSIC
A Village Romeo and Juliet
Delius gets a pro-am makeover
When Lee Reynolds was hired to
conduct New Sussex Opera’s latest
project, the Lewes-raised musician
wasn’t immediately sure which opera
to put on, but he didn’t have any
doubt in his mind which theatrical
director he wanted to work with.
Local classical music cognoscenti
will know Lee as conductor of the
Kantanti Ensemble; he’s reached a
much wider audience performing at
Glyndebourne and the London Symphony
Orchestra, and conducting
operas and other concerts in venues
such as the Barbican and Aldeburgh.
You get the feeling that he’s fairly
near the start of what might well
become a glorious international
conducting career.
New Sussex Opera has specialised,
since 1978, in ‘presenting innovative
productions of neglected works’,
backing up their amateur chorus with
a professional cast of singers. Lee
needed to take certain criteria into
account before choosing which opera to perform.
“After a lot of asking round I decided that Delius’
A Village Romeo and Juliet ticked all the boxes: it
is English, not in the common repertoire, and it
has a strong choral element. Its rich soundworld is
as decadent as slipping into a warm bath, and includes
the much-loved, often performed interlude,
The Walk to the Paradise Garden.”
And Lee’s theatrical director? “I’d worked with
Susannah Waters on the Glyndebourne community
opera Imago, and she was the only choice,” he
says. Waters, another Lewes resident and formerly
director of Paddock Productions, is probably best
known here for directing The Finnish Prisoner in
2007, and is herself a well-known
figure in the classical music/opera
world well beyond these parts.
She jumped at the chance (“because
Lee was involved”) and by the time
I meet the pair of them, in Flint
Owl one drizzly January morning,
they’re well into the pre-rehearsal
stage of the project. They take
enthusiastic turns dealing out details:
the 1930s/40s rustic aesthetic of the
costumes; how Delius’ original range
of instruments had to be reduced;
the fine soloists and talented scenic
designer Anna Driftmier; the multifaceted,
locally fashioned wooden
stage design.
Susannah and her team were keen to
involve the NSO chorus to an even
greater degree than their musical
contribution in the Delius score
allows, so this has been ingeniously
achieved by requiring its members to
double up as ever-present stage management,
remaining in view when
not singing and altering the versatile stage settings
between - and during - scenes.
I wonder about the dynamics of working with a
mixed cast of amateurs and professionals - which
both Lee and Susannah have repeatedly been
drawn to in their careers - and they tell me of the
many benefits. The enthusiasm of the amateurs
rubs off on their more seasoned colleagues, it
seems, and the amateurs’ confidence is boosted by
working alongside pros. “It needs the right people
to handle it,” says Susannah, “But when it works, it
works for everybody. Any cynicism dispels.” AL
A Village Romeo and Juliet, Lewes Town Hall, 22nd
March, then touring till Sun 2nd April [kantanti.com]
Costume designs by Anna Driftmier
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