Opera on the edge

Opera on the edge

Lacuna
Performed by Chamber Made Opera
Composed by David Chesworth
Libretto and direction by Douglas Horton
At the Gasworks Theatre, Melbourne, until November 7
Reviewed by Lin Wolfe

This is a difficult production to recommend widely. That's not to say that the staging and performances are not of a high standard — they are excellent — however, this is a very demanding piece on an audience, not a simple entertainment.

In particular, David Chesworth's complex score does not allow the listener to become too comfortable for long. The stylised sets and costumes and the clever use of lighting add to this sense of slight unease. There is an edge to everything here.

According to writer/director Douglas Horton, "Lacuna is concerned with the exercise of power on the political and personal level". The central figure of King Orpheus was drawn from Horton's "fascination with the power exercised by people such as Saddam Hussein, Ceausescu, Stalin, Hitler, Amin, Pol Pot and George Bush, among so many others".

This is politics, relationships, war as a chess game. King Orpheus relentlessly manipulates the pieces around the board, sacrificing pawns, knights, bishops, rooks and eventually the queen herself in a desperate attempt to hold on to the power which has totally corrupted and dehumanised him. Finally, having destroyed his world and himself, he stands alone. Stalemate and madness.

This is a challenging work, to be experienced if not necessarily enjoyed.

From GLW issue 78