It’s a Wonderful Life @English National Opera 2022
What a serendipitous time for ENO to perform this feel-good opera. It is of course Christmas, but for ENO the dastardly Sir Nicholas Serota, Chairman of the Arts Council has just announced the withdrawal of ENO’s Arts Council funding and will therefore reside over the death of this ninety-year-old company. More of this later.
It’s a Wonderful Life is a celebration of Frank Capra’s 1946 film of the same name. The world premiere of Jake Heggie’s opera, with Gene Scheer’s libretto, was first performed in Houston in 2016 and revised in San Francisco two years later. The film follows the story of George Bailey’s life, which in a fit of depression he attempts to extricate himself from, by jumping to his death from a bridge. He is saved by his guardian angel, originally Clarence in the film but Clara in the opera, who is an Angel “second class”. She is trying to earn her wings to become an Angel “first class”, and indeed, by saving George Bailey from his suicide attempt she succeeds and is promoted. She shows him what life would have been like without him for the people of the American town of Bedford Falls who would all be controlled by the dastardly money grabbing Chairman of the Council, Henry Potter who seems to have no heart or soul and was booed continuously at his curtain call – Sir Nicholas Serota, eat your heart out!! The story has indeed all the melodramatic ingredients required – family, love, the goody, and the baddy and above all, treachery. It is in many ways fresh and innovative. Whilst some of the music could be described as somewhat cheesy and light-hearted, the opera has played to full houses with the audience singing with gusto their rendition of Auld Lang Syne with many having tears in their eyes at the end.
Much of the singing was outstanding. The standout performances of Danielle de Niese’s Angel Clara, Frederick Ballentine’s George Bailey – he was previously Sporting Life in Porgy and Bess – and George’s wife, Mary Hatch sung by the thrilling Jennifer France, who poignantly sings “I’m going to love you until the day I die”. The baddy, Henry Potter was thrillingly sung by the dramatic American baritone, Michael Mayes with Harewood artists Idunnu Münch, Zwakele Tshabalala and Ossian Huskinson playing the Angels “first class” together with Keri Fuge. Both the wonderful Orchestra and Chorus were brilliantly led by Nicole Paiement and the production was directed by Aletta Collins, in a slick presentation of the twelve different themes of the opera. We all looked forward in anticipation as “second class” Angel, Danielle de Niese, who in a sublime performance was on stage throughout the opera, showed us a kaleidoscope of all that was required for her to pass into an Angel “first class”.
But in the end, the six hundred direct and indirect members of ENO’s Orchestra, Chorus and Staff are really no better off for having produced such a wonderful opera in a feel-good factor production. Scrooge Sir Nicholas Serota and his henchmen, particularly the outdated Darren Henley, the Chief Executive of the Arts Council, are about to destroy a ninety-year-old institution within the culture of Great Britain. This “Independent” Arts Council body can no longer justify the term “independent” as it listens to its paymaster, particularly the previous Minister for Arts, Nadine Dorries, using an excuse of “levelling up” to justify the destruction of this, and other grand artistic institutions with the idiotic outpouring that opera needs to “move into car parks, pubs and small venues”. Indeed, it already does, not that some members of the Arts Council could possibly know this, as their dislike for opera speaks volumes of the decisions that had been made. Darren Henley, Sir Nicholas Serota and others should immediately resign and no longer pretend to lead the artistic stage with the “independence” that it deserves.
Congratulations to ENO on an outstanding It’s a Wonderful Life and a great Christmas show.
David Buchler
