Read what our audiences have to say about Aida
Review from Joanna
Just wanted to say that the performance of Aida last night was wonderful. The singing, acting and costumes were superb and the orchestra excellent. The whole experience was highly enjoyable. Well done to everyone involved
Review from Richard
Aida November 1, 2008
Visually stunning, with some excellent singing from Jane Dutton, Matthew Best and very especially Claire Rutter. Overall quality of the performance was marred by some poor acting from John Hudson (Radames), however. Some woodenness from a singer is tolerable, but to be able to express passion only by bouncing up and down from the knees is disappointing. He was as convincing as a warrior hero as would have been Baldrick in a busby. It is also amateurish to need to look up at your flag to see if you are waving it properly. His worst moment came at the end, when in the last two orchestral bars he found it necessary to look up gormlessly from cradling Aida's lifeless body, presumably to check whether the advancing walls of the tomb had actually closed yet. This completely killed the emotional intensity of the moment. Dreadful!
Review from Adrian
The performance of Aida last night 30 oct.was an example of ENO at its best.The performance was superb in every respect -performance, sets, costumes staging. first class.
Review from Peter
We went to see Aida last night and enjoyed an evening of wonderful singing and drama not lessened in any way though the cast were suffering from colds and chest infections. Well done everyone! Zandra Rhodes design was superb - when we could see it that is. Surprisingly given the production's USP is the designer's input, the lighting was often lacking and what appeared later to be glorious colours and designs were swathed in often unnecessary gloom. When the lights came on from time to time all was revealed in stunning detail. Turn the lights up?
Review from Matthew
Aida - 22 October
My only previous visits to the ENO had been to see rarely performed operas (Nixon in China and Satyagraha) but I was tempted to take the family to see Aida at the ENO because it was some months since the Glyndebourne season ended (I went three times this year), even longer since we had all gone to the opera together (The Bartered Bride at ROH in 2005) and I was intrigued by the prospect of Zandra Rhodes' designs. In the best tradition of beauty contests, I'll comment on the various aspects of the production in reverse order.
Easily the worst part of the evening was the audience which was inconsiderate, noisy and rude. Around me people spoke during the performance, frequently unwrapped sweets, clapped during the music, left a mobile phone on and ran for the exit as soon as the performance ended. It's hard to image a worse audience at an opera so that gets a score of 0/5.
The theatre itself does little to enhance the evening. It was too warm throughout, there is less legroom than on a budget airline, the seats are uncomfortable and the pitch between the rows is insufficient for the height people are today. (2/5)
The solo singing was mixed at best. We were warned beforehand that several of the cast were suffering from seasonal ailments but if they were not well enough to perform then understudies should have been used or the performance cancelled. Deliberately offering up below par singing is unforgiveable. Some of the soloists seemed uninflected by the dreaded lurgy and the Ethiopian king and the High Priest gave commanding performances. (2/5)
The direction was limited and very formal. For a love story set during a war there was very little emotion on stage. The soloists were stationary for most of the time and usually singing directly to the audience rather than to the objects of their passion. (2/5)
The ensemble scenes were much much better. Whether it was the priests singing at the trial or the triumphal procession after the initial skirmish with Ethiopia, the stage was full of singing and movement. I am not sure that we needed the acrobats but they did no harm and the scene they were in was the liveliest and helped to kick momentum in to an otherwise fairly flat performance. (4/5)
But easily the best part of the performance was the Zandra Rhodes designs. The sets were fairly simple but brightly decorated with Egyptian symbols in turquoise and orange. The same colours were used in the costumers and in, er, the elephant! I especially liked the Anubis headdresses worn at the celebration and the large Eye of Horus symbol on the prison bars. (5/5)
On balance, the ensemble singing and the designs saved what could have been a poor evening and made it one that was worth going out for. However, I already know that I will be going to Glyndebourne several times next year but I am unlikely to be going back to the ENO in a hurry.
