The Black Mask: a brutal and complex parable for our times

By Gavin Dixon, 07 June 2016

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“the experience is one of macabre intensity”

Reviewed at Baltic Opera (Opera Bałtycka w Gdańsku), Gdańsk on 5 June 2016

Penderecki, Die Schwarze Maske (The Black Mask)

Baltic Opera (Opera Bałtycka w Gdańsku)

Szymon Morus, Conductor

Marek Weiss, Director

Hanna Szymczak, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Sylwester Kostecki, Silvanus Schuller

Ryszard Morka, François Tortebat

Karolina Sołomin, Arabella

Katarzyna Hołysz, Benigna

Anna Fabrello, Daga

Karolina Sikora, Rosa Sacchi

Monika Fedyk-Klimaszewska, Gräfin Laura Hüttenwächter

Aleksander Kunach, Hadank

Ryszard Minkiewicz, Jedidja Potter

Krzysztof Rzeszutek, Schedel

Robert Gierlach, Löwel Perl

Jacek Batarowski, Robert Dedo

Jacek Sambor, Doktor Knoblochzer

Piotr Nowacki, Graf Ebbo Hüttenwächter

Stanisław Kierner, Plebanus Wendt

Radosław Palutkiewicz, Johnson

Art Survival: Baltic Opera's triple bill in Gdańsk

Graham Watts, 23rd April

A fascinating programme of opera and dance to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Baltic Opera House.

***11

Reality television: ENO’s Angel’s Bone in Manchester

Lawrence Dunn, 12th May

Kip Williams and ENO mount an extraordinary new production of Du Yun and Royce Vavrek’s multifaceted opera, with performances of great emotional directness broadcast live on camera.

*****

Sir Thomas Allen’s Figaro for Scottish Opera still entertains

David Smythe, 9th May

A traditional Marriage of Figaro entertains with a strong cast, eye-catching design and lighting, and Amanda Holden’s earthy libretto.

****1

Sasha Cooke brings sharp intelligence to Seattle Opera’s Carmen

Thomas May, 8th May

Sasha Cooke’s thoughtful role debut anchors Paul Curran’s visually and musically alert but dramatically uneven production.

****1

Werther oozes quiet despair in new Canadian Opera Company staging

John Gilks, 7th May

Excellent performances cannot turn a conventional production of Massenet’s Werther into a dramatic experience for the 21st century.

***11

Welsh National Opera’s Dutchman docks in Birmingham

Rohan Shotton, 7th May

This bracing performance of The Flying Dutchman is a powerful reminder of the extraordinary musical standards which are at risk in the face of WNO’s subsidy cuts.

****1

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Gavin Dixon

Gavin Dixon is a writer, journalist and editor specialising in classical music. He writes for publications such as Gramophone, Classical Music and BBC Music Magazine. Gavin has a PhD on the symphonies of Alfred Schnittke and is a member of the editorial team for the “Alfred Schnittke Collected Works” edition. His website is here.

Penderecki’s The Black Mask, a brutal and complex parable for our times