The Riders

Victorian Opera was back to their usual fare with a world premiere of a commissioned opera by composer Iain Grandage. The Riders was based on the Tim Winton novel of the same name and was a dark piece. 

It is the story of a man whose wife deserts him and his young daughter, a man who then chases her all over Europe, struggling to accept she doesn’t want to return. The Riders are mythical horsemen who ride forever trying to catch the unattainable. 

This was a fascinating production. The design was comprised mainly of sawhorses, awkwardly stacked twenty high at the side and placed on the main revolve, where they were moved into different patterns for various scenes, sometimes with trestle tops placed on top. During one scene Scully displays his anger by throwing them around stage. Scully is a very practical man, a labourer, and would have been familiar with a sawhorse. In an early scene they were placed to represent horses and riders – the riders of the title.

The revolve was used very effectively, giving the feeling of movement. There was a walkway above the stage at the back which was used for the airport lounge and Jennifer often appeared there, far away from Scully. 

Scully was played by experienced baritone, Barry Ryan. He captured the character of the brooding loner and sang magnificently. He was well matched by Jessica Aszodi as Jennifer, who has grown in stature since I heard her last. 

The seven-year-old Billie was played by Isabela Calderon, who was at least ten years older. She certainly sounded like a young girl, but casting a shorter person would have helped with verisimilitude. It was a demanding role for someone so young and she did very well making good use of her pleasant voice.

Playing various others roles and, according to the notes, the riders, were Dimity Shepherd, David Rogers-Smith and Jerzy Kozlowski. I have been following Dimity’s career for almost twenty years now and was very pleased to hear the richness and warmth in her voice that can only come with maturity. David seemed to relax too much, such that his voice wasn’t always supported. 

It was good to see Jerzy singing a major role and singing it beautifully. The three often sang together and were well balanced.

The amplification was mainly required for Isabela, but most members of the audience would have been unaware of it, it was so well done. The lighting was also very effective.

The vocal music was quite melodic with the more avant-garde elements coming from the orchestra. This was a powerful night at the theatre.

Graham Ford

Images: (top) L-R: Barry Ryan as Scully, Isabela Calderon as Billie; (middle) L-R Jerzy Kozlowski, Dimity Shepherd and David Rogers-Smith as The Riders  & (lower) L-R: Jessica Aszodi as Jennifer, Barry Ryan as Scully, Isabela Calderon as Billie. Photographer: Jeff Busby.