Now in its 19th year Grimeborn Opera Festival at The Arcola Theatre continues to challenge with two relatively unknown (to me anyway) modern chamber operas Erwartung and Murderous Delusions of Gavrilo K: A Double Bill.

The first opera is Arnold Schoenberg’s Erwartung (“Expectation”), a psychologically intense one-act expressionist monodrama written in 1909 performed in German with English surtitles projected.

Originally scored for solo soprano and large orchestra, this semi-staged production uses a new electronic re-orchestration, creating an intimate yet unsettling atmosphere. The opera follows a single character, Die Frau (the Woman), powerfully sung by Anna Marmion. Silent actors portray her as she searches through a dark forest for her missing lover. Convinced he has betrayed her, she is consumed by grief, jealousy, fear and rage, while the line between reality and hallucination becomes increasingly blurred.

When the Woman finally discovers a body, the truth is devastating, yet there is no clear resolution. Erwartung becomes a compelling exploration of one woman’s subconscious, where memory, desire and terror merge into a haunting psychological landscape.

Anna Marmion delivers an emotionally demanding performance, sustaining the opera’s intensity throughout its uninterrupted 30 minutes. Schoenberg’s atonal score, unlike anything I had previously heard, is deeply expressive and surprisingly melodic.

Erwartung is coupled with Rodgers’ electronic re-orchestration of The Murderous Delusions of Gavrilo K, featuring visuals from some of Britain’s most exciting young video artists.

Gavrilo has assassinated the President, claiming he acted to prevent a catastrophic war after receiving prophetic visions. Before trial, he is sent to a psychiatric institute where the distinguished Doctor Sunderland must decide whether he is sane. Her verdict will determine whether he is executed or imprisoned.

Confident that Gavrilo is delusional, Sunderland’s scepticism is shaken when he reveals intimate secrets about her life that he could not possibly know. She declares him insane but political pressure and fear prevail in court, and Gavrilo is sentenced to death.

Gavrilo mysteriously disappears from his cell before his execution, leaving officials scrambling for explanations while rumours of supernatural intervention spread. Sunderland, once a committed rationalist, is left questioning whether everything can be explained by science alone.

The cast delivered compelling performances, bringing emotional depth to this work. Quito Clothier’s portrayal Gavrilo showed a youthful vulnerability with unwavering conviction.  His vocal performance was both lyrical and intense, Elizabeth Marshall as Doctor Sunderland, gave a finely judged portrayal of a woman whose confidence in science and reason gradually unravels. Her transformation from detached professional to someone haunted by doubt was both believable and moving.

The ensemble brought clarity and dramatic tension to the score, while the minimalist staging kept the focus firmly on the characters’ psychological conflict.

In both operas the score was melodic and accessible, avoiding the harsh atonality that I expected of modern chamber operas This was an evening of ambitious music theatre that proved modern opera can still surprise, provoke and fascinate.

Four Stars.

Reviewed by Nina Gardner

Playing at The Arcola Theatre 5th – 8th August

For tickets and further details see link below

Erwartung / The Murderous Delusions of Gavrilo K: A Double Bill

Cast/Performers

Erwartung

Anna Marmion              Die Frau

Eddie Boyce                    Actor

Maisie Fawcett              Actor

Lydia Swift                       Actor

Anna Toogood               Actor

The Murderous Delusions of Gavrilo

Quito Clothier               Gavrilo K

Elizabeth Marshall      Dr Sunderland

Anna Loveday                Nurse / Mother / Vision 2 / Prosecutor

Olekseii Zasiadko        Institute Director / Vision 1 / Judge

Jaymes Aaron                State Functionary

Creatives/Company

Music(s):                           Arnold Schoenberg (Erwartung

Music(s):                           Kevin Rodgers  (The Murderous Delusions of Gavrilo K)

Producer:                         Grimeborn Festival Opera
Presented by:                 Tearworks Productions
Director:                           Valeria Perboni

Set Designer                   Fabia Martin (Erwartung)

Set Designer                   Thomas Bugg (The Murderous Delusions of Gavrilo K)