Deborah Warner directs a memorable Turn of the Screw in Rome

Interestingly enough for a British opera, the premiere of Benjamin Britten’s The Turn of the Screw took place in Italy, at the Teatro La Fenice in 1954, upon a commission by the Venice Biennale. This is the third Britten opera brought to the stage of the Teatro Costanzi by acclaimed director Deborah Warner, after Billy Budd (2018) and Peter Grimes (2024). 

While the last two were co-productions – with Covent Garden, Teatro Real of Madrid, Opéra national de Paris – this Turn of the Screw was produced exclusively by the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma. The scale of the work is much smaller compared to the other two, being this a chamber opera with only six characters, no chorus and a 15-strong orchestra; but the pathos and the themes are not dissimilar.

A Governess accepts a job in an isolated country house teaching two orphaned children, whom she soon discovers are being haunted by the ghosts of the previous governess and the former valet, both now deceased. She sets herself the mission to save the children from these evil forces, but to no avail. Based on the eponymous short novel by Henry James, this apparently “classic” gothic tale is actually incredibly modern for the psychological depth and ambiguity that characterises both the novel and the opera. In many productions, the ghosts are ghosts of the mind: the children’s past traumatic experiences which reflect on their strange behaviour, and the Governess’s isolation making her see things that probably aren’t there. The theme of innocence and the loss of innocence is at the heart of the opera (“The ceremony of innocence is drowned”, the ghosts quoting WB Yeats).

The story is brought to life with Justin Nardella’s minimalist set of black walls and floors, sparse furniture and realistic trees in the background, with Jean Kalman’s lighting used to great effect. With such a simple setting, the beautiful costumes by period costume expert Luca Costigliolo take even more prominence and fill the stage. Joanna O’Keeffe signs the incisive movements on set.

The entire cast is British. Two young children were chosen for the roles of Miles and Flora. This courage was rewarded by very satisfying performances from Cecily Balmforth (Flora), only ten, already a confident actress, and Zandy Hull (Miles), twelve, clearly already an experienced singer. His interpretation of the “Malo” tune – to a clever text by the Myfanwy Piper playing with the multiple meanings of the Latin word “malo” (I’d rather/apple tree/evil) – was haunting.

All the “adult” and “ghost” roles were very well sung. Tenor Ian Bostridge, as both the Prologue and Peter Quint, has a limpid, lyrical tone, oddly in contrast with the dark nature of the character. Austro-British soprano Anna Prohaska was a perfect Governess, her timbre brighter than that of Emma Bell’s Mrs Grose, with a darker colour suited to the older character. Finally, mezzo-soprano Christine Rice sang the soprano role of Miss Jessel, more and more convincing as the opera progressed until the powerful “Here my tragedy began, here revenge begins”.

While all the vocal roles are written for the higher registers, the orchestral score is incredibly rich and varied, somehow unexpectedly for the limited numbers of a chamber orchestra. Ben Glassberg conducted the great variety of instruments effectively.

The Turn of the Screw is far as an opera can be from “feel good”; nonetheless it is a masterpiece that leaves a deep mark on the soul and was performed here in a brilliant and memorable way.