Our May modern opera was Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten, produced in 1945. It is the story of a modern English fishing village that vilified Peter Grimes, a morose and bad tempered fisherman whose apprentice died at sea. Village folk thought Grimes was unsuited to be in charge of young apprentices who were mostly taken from the orphanage.
Grimes loved the local schoolteacher who befriended him and tried to soften his grim character but to no avail. The villagers rebelled against his decision to get another apprentice boy from the orphanage despite the schoolteacher trying to ensure the boy was not harmed. One stormy night the apprentice slipped to his death while climbing down the cliff to Grimes’ boat and Grimes took the body and disposed of it in the sea. A terrible clash occurred when villagers confronted him with where the missing apprentice had got to. Grimes distraught with anger and grief took his boat out to sea and sank it thus drowning himself.
Most of us found the opera “interesting” as a modern opera but missed the lush orchestral music and arias of the great C19th operas, despite the beautiful singing and staging of this version. Britten’s music was reminiscent of the sea and storms and contained the lovely orchestral interludes that are often played by themselves as a suite of Four Sea Interludes.
Meg Dillon
Grimes loved the local schoolteacher who befriended him and tried to soften his grim character but to no avail. The villagers rebelled against his decision to get another apprentice boy from the orphanage despite the schoolteacher trying to ensure the boy was not harmed. One stormy night the apprentice slipped to his death while climbing down the cliff to Grimes’ boat and Grimes took the body and disposed of it in the sea. A terrible clash occurred when villagers confronted him with where the missing apprentice had got to. Grimes distraught with anger and grief took his boat out to sea and sank it thus drowning himself.
Most of us found the opera “interesting” as a modern opera but missed the lush orchestral music and arias of the great C19th operas, despite the beautiful singing and staging of this version. Britten’s music was reminiscent of the sea and storms and contained the lovely orchestral interludes that are often played by themselves as a suite of Four Sea Interludes.
Meg Dillon
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