The Rape Of Lucretia

by Peter Burwasser

opera review

Dramatic Tension

There is much to admire in the boldly conceived opera by the 23-year-old Benjamin Britten, The Rape of Lucretia. The chamber-sized score is beautifully textured and intrinsically sensitive to the flow of the narrative. Britten’s sense for the dramatic weight of timbral and harmonic nuances was nearly Mozartean. Alas, theatrically and structurally, this is a clumsy and intellectually compromised work, its brilliance pulled down by sophomoric sophistry.

The problem is the stuttering libretto by Britten's friend Ronald Duncan, based on a play by André Obey. Combining the basic structures of classical tragedy and Christian theology seems like an oil-and-water mix, and indeed this proves to be an elusive synergy. The issue is not one of philosophy or religion, but of good theater. Britten teases us with a symmetrically proportioned play of human impulses, and begins to sketch out characterizations that might interact in a way that would illuminate emotional subtleties. By making the denouement a parable of Christian salvation, all of the potential for true tragic resolution is blown away. The drama closes with a simplicity that glances away from the iconic power and depth of the tragedian's art.

As theatrical failures go, however, The Rape of Lucretia is a fascinating one, well worth hearing as a milestone in Britten's growth as one of the last century's finest opera composers. And it was easy enough to appreciate those virtues in this musically gleaming production. Conductor David Hayes drew out gossamer patterns with his superb young players, finding exquisite balances of tonalities.

The singing was also completely professional. Britten wrote the most compelling parts for the female voices, not only for the protagonist, Lucretia, but for her servants. The morning-after scene, a burst of sunshine following a malevolent night, displays a luminous lyricism that was poignantly portrayed by Elizabeth De Shong and Tammy Tyburczy. The central duo of Lucretia and the rapist Tarquinius was portrayed with clarity and conviction by Fiona Murphy and Howard Reddy. Special praise belongs to Shalanda Jamell Bond, as the female chorus, a soprano of special warmth and expressivity.

The production was simple and generally effective, with bold outlines drawn with carefully arranged drapes and lighting. Some of the props were odd, though, such as an industrial drop light that spun and beamed into the audience during the rape scene (was this intentional?), and weird silvery breast plates on the soldiers that seemed lifted from a superhero epic. But these were minor annoyances compared to Britten's heavy-handed proselytizing.

April 29, Curtis Opera Theater at Prince Music Theater

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