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Scoring A Century is an opera with music by English composer David Blake.[1] The libretto was written by Opera Director Keith Warner. It is described as a 'low entertainment for highbrows, or vice versa'.[2] It tells the history of Mr and Mrs Jedermann, who travel through the events, politics and social change of the twentieth century, never ageing. It is a modern Singspiel,[3] a review of a century in nineteen panels.
Although its premiere was not reviewed in the press, a 2019 revival received widespread attention where the piece was heavily criticised.[4]
Performance history
editScoring a Century was originally conceived as part of the millennium celebrations. Scenes from the work were premiered by the University of York Music Department in November 1999 whilst the complete work was being lined up to debut at Portland Opera, Oregon. Just as plans were beginning to finalise, however, the US] suffered the 9/11 terrorist attacks. “After 9/11, American opera houses immediately lost their budgets and Portland Opera decided to do Bohèmes and Magic Flutes instead,” Blake says. “It was a big disappointment.”[5]
On March 4, 2010 the opera received its World Premiere at the Crescent Theatre, Birmingham, by students from the Birmingham Conservatoire vocal department, directed by Warner and conducted by Lionel Friend.
The opera was revived in 2019 by British Youth Opera at the Peacock Theatre in London, again with Warner directing and Friend conducting.[6]
Reception
editDespite a strong cast that performed with 'more gusto than the piece deserves'[3] the opera was widely panned, receiving just two stars in both the Times and the Guardian, and was described as 'unwieldy, overlong and stylistically diffuse'.[7] Warner came in for particular criticism, for 'stilted dialogue [that] trips over some embarrassingly bad jokes'[3] and a 'piece that he might have profitably revised even further'.[7]
Roles
edit| Role | Voice Type | Premiere Cast, 4 March 2010 (Conductor: Lionel Friend) |
|---|---|---|
| Ernest Jedermann | Baritone | Matthew Cooper |
| Edith Jedermann | Mezzo | Lucie Louvrier |
| Private | Tenor | Benjamin Gillham [1] |
| Sergeant | Baritone | Joseph Kennedy |
| Nurse | Mezzo | Anna Jeffers [2] |
| Woodrow Wilson | Tenor | Kristian Cleworth |
| Clemenceau | Tenor | Mikael Onelius |
| Lloyd George | Bass | James Davies |
| Lenin | Bass | Ian McFarlane |
| Manager | Spoken | Debbie Oliver |
| Jedermann's Son | Spoken | Dale Harris |
| Berthold | Tenor | Henrik Lagercrantz |
| Studio Assistant | Spoken | Hannah Nye |
| Young Man | Spoken | Ben Gillham |
| Violinist | Spoken | Joshua Takacs |
| Tartine | Soprano | Francesca Saracino |
| Man in Nazi Uniform | Spoken | Thomas Arnold-Haynes |
| Gestapo Officer | Spoken | Craig Jackson |
| Father | Baritone | Hedd Owen Griffiths |
| Mother | Mezzo | Fiona Krober/Shira Lang |
| Station Master | Bass | Timothy Elliot |
| Voice Of Son | Spoken | Dale Harris |
| Kommissar | Spoken | Andrea Tjader |
| American Chairman | Tenor | Lee Beaumont |
| Soviet Prosecutor | Bass | Matthew Durkan |
| Girl in Jeans | Soprano | Penny Appleyard |
| Old Man | Tenor | Mitesh Khatri [3] |
| Woman 1 | Mezzo | Olivia Barry [4]/Harriet Campbell(alternating) |
| Woman 2 | Soprano | Lianne Birkett/Georgina Stalbow(alternating) |
| Woman 3 | Soprano | Claire Lees/Roma Loukes(alternating) |
| Woman in Black | Spoken | Andrea Pfenninger |
| Hippy 1 | Spoken | Joe Kennedy |
| Hippy 2 | Spoken | Stephanie Darkins |
| Hippy 3 | Spoken | Yukimi Muta |
| Hippy 4 | Spoken | Rosie Secker |
| Mary Lou | Spoken | Rachel Farr |
| Stage Manager | Spoken | Rose Mitchell |
| Police Officer | Spoken | Kay Standen |
| African-American | Spoken | Roberta Turner |
| Nurse(Act 2) | Spoken | Amelia Burns |
| Yuppie | Tenor | Craig Jackson |
| Bennie Blumenkohl | Spoken | Joe Kennedy |
| Evita | Spoken | Rosie Secker |
| Studio Producer | Spoken | Austine Broad |
| Engineer | Spoken | Timothy Elliott |
| Chorus | All of the above plus Phillippa Cairns, Rachel Bowden, Claire Barnett Jones and Stephanie McClean |
References
edit- ^ Amanda Holden (2001). The New Penguin Opera Guide. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-051475-9.
- ^ "Crescent Theatre - Scoring a Century". secure.crescent-theatre.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
- ^ a b c Clements, Andrew (2019-09-05). "Scoring a Century review – youth can't animate an unfocused evening". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
- ^ Hugill, Planet. "A considerable company achievement: David Blake's Scoring a Century from British Youth Opera". Retrieved 2024-10-03.
- ^ Interview and Article with David Blake and Keith Warner, Financial Times website, (subscription required)
- ^ "Scoring a Century – a long-delayed London premiere". Camden New Journal. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
- ^ a b "Scoring a Century review, Peacock Theatre, London, 2019". The Stage. Retrieved 2024-10-03.