Britten – A Midsummer Night’s Dream
La Monnaie, Brussels – December 26 2004 Conductor: Ivor Bolton. Production: David McVicar. Sets & costumes: Rae Smith. Oberon: Michael Chance. Tytania: Laura Claycomb. Puck: David Greeves. Theseus: Brindley Sherratt. Hippolyta: Ruby Philogene. Lysander: Alfred Boe. Demetrius: Leigh Melrose. Hermia: Deanne Meek. Helena: Madeline Bender. Bottom: Laurent Naouri. Quince: Henry Waddington. Flute: Richard Coxon. Snug: Gwynne Howell. Snout: Kim Schrader. Starveling: Lionel Lhote. I had joked, before going, about the timeliness of programming A Midsummer Night’s Dream over the Christmas period. But as the emphasis in this production is definitely on the magical, to magical effect, it turned out to be a good Christmas show after all. I had other reasons to worry, too: my mother was joining us for this one and she likes her opera to be escapist, which to her means, among other things, in period gear. I thought McVicar might let her down. Remember his Agrippina ? Of that, I wrote, for exampl...