Review: Orfeo and Eurydice

You know how it is. You wait ages for a production of Orfeo and Eurydice and then two come along together. Following fast on the heels of Cork Operatic Society’s production, Gluck’s pivotal early classical opera charting the emotional turbulence of mythical bereavement got another outing when the work was performed on the opening evening of the Clonmel Junction Festival.

Theresia Guschibauer’s pro am production combining a local chorus with two big expressive solo voices and a chamber orchestra in the antique setting of Old St Mary’s Church made for an unusual and highly charged musical evening. The original 1762 score was pared of instrumental and dance numbers making for a tidy running time. There was an almost devotional mood with the full house hushed and refraining from applause until the very last gasp.