The Australian Opera's first visit to Britain was a delightful event, hardly surprising given the quality of Baz Luhrmann's brilliant staging. To set the Dream in the environment of India in the days of the Raj may not have been particularly novel, but it was carried through quite comprehensively, with the orchestra and conductor in military uniforms playing in a bandstand on stage.
Michael Chance was familiar, and Paul Whelan would become so. There was also a great star of the future in Ian Bostridge. Those with longer memories might notice Bruce Martin and Graeme Macfarlane, two experienced Australians who had worked with Scottish Opera in their youth. And directing the music as expertly as ever was Roderick Brydon, in bewhiskered bandmaster guise, with his old SCO colleagues in front of him, making his last operatic appearance in Scotland. The three packed performances were greeted with joy.
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