Singalong sitcom of the 18th century

First appeared: Evening Star, Ipswich, March 18, 2005

Cosi Fan Tutte, by Mozart
Swansea City Opera, New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich

OPERA is a strange artform. Sometimes it seems an unlikely survival into the 21st century.

Even the best-known works are usually the result of great artists applying their talents to pretty flimsy material.

Take Cosi Fan Tutte. The plot and characters are like a dodgy sitcom pilot. You can imagine the TV producers sitting round shaking their heads.

It wasn't actually that popular when it was first written, but it has survived more than 200 years for one great reason. Mozart.

None of the master's gloriously catchy tunes are here and at times it seems as if the composer was working on autopilot. But even on automatic, Mozart is irresistible.

He creates a unique and distinctive sound world that would pass the evening pleasantly if there was nothing else to enjoy.

Despite the ridiculous storyline, this touring production provides enough innocent entertainment to send you home humming and smiling.

There are a good few laughs along the way, thanks to a down-to-earth modern translation and the nice comic timing of all the cast.

The situation is quite basic and familiar. Young soldiers Ferrando and Guglielmo make a bet that their sweethearts are faithful. The older and more cynical Don Alfonso takes the bet - and then sets out to prove his point in various underhand ways.

Not that he tries to seduce Fiordiligi or Dorabella himself. He gets the young men to woo each other's girls.

Andrew Gallagher is a strong presence in the central role of Don Alfonso. He can raise a laugh just with his eyebrows.

Much of the story - well, some of it - might be almost believable if the mixed-up lovers were teenagers.

Actors in opera are usually cast because they can sing, rather than because they fit the part in any other way. The four here - especially Yvonne Patrick and Alex Anderson-Hall as Fiordiligi and Ferrando - act and sing their parts beautifully, with utter conviction. It adds another layer of unreality to what is already an unreal scenario that they are surely old enough to be the parents of the naïve innocents they portray.