Die Fledermaus at the Mayflower Theatre Southampton Review

Reviewed by Jan Dixon

This review is based on Die Fledermaus, performed by the Welsh National Opera at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton on 19 October 2017. Die Fledermaus is an operetta, composed by Johann Strauss II in 1873; premiering in Vienna in 1874. The running time is 2 hours 55 minutes including two intervals. It is sung in English with English surtitles.

The main premise of Die Fledermaus centred around an extravagant ball held by the Russian Prince Orlofsky. There are three acts, set in a house in Vienna; Prince Orlofsky’s Villa and a prison. The stage sets certainly draw one into the relevant scenes very well; being implicit in their design. Very colourful costumes and decorations also enhance the portrayal of Vienna in the 1870’s.

Rosalinde is looking forward to a few day’s carefree time with her lover, Alfred, while her husband Eisenstein, is facing time in prison for hitting a policeman. Her maid, Adele, asks to be excused in order to care for a sick aunt, but really she is going to attend the ball in disguise. Eisenstein is also going to attend the ball, but tells his wife Rosalinde that he is leaving for the prison. The Prison Governor, Colonel Frank, arrives at the home of Eisenstein to take him to prison, but assumes that Alfred, who is wearing Eisenstein’s dressing gown, must be Eisenstein. He therefore takes Alfred to prison by mistake, before he too leaves for the ball. In truth, all four characters are planning to spend the evening at a magnificent masquerade ball given by the Russian Prince Orlofsky. As the characters are brought together in various guises, the scene is set for a comical story of mistaken identity. The plot is bringing all the main characters together at the ball was instigated by Eisenstein’s friend, Dr Falke, who want revenge towards Eisenstein. This was because of an incident involving Dr Falke being left dressed as a bat (Die Fledermaus) after a fancy dress ball held by Eisenstein.

It was interesting to see that spoken dialogue was an integral part of the operetta, mostly used as comical asides by various cast members. Also, different classes of society and nationalities were also represented, in the form of a Russian Prince, two doctors, a chambermaid, and actress/dancer, a troupe of women and a Hungarian duchess. It was such a great pleasure to hear the beautiful music of Johann Strauss II, so enhanced by the amazing vocal talents of Judith Howarth (Rosalinde) and Paul Charles Clarke (Alfred) in particular. It was a very strong cast, with Rhian Lois (Adele), Anna Harvey (Prince Orlofsky) and Mark Stone (Rosalinde’s husband) demonstrating their musical prowess. The Welsh National Opera Chorus are to be congratulated for their rousing singing and dancing, giving such life to the performance. There was a small part of a gaoler played by Steve Speirs, who provided a comedy role in the last scene in prison, drawing together the links in the storyline with a distinct Welsh accent. The orchestra was magnificent, led so competently by James Southall. Certainly an operetta that left the audience humming and singing to the beautiful songs and music not only during the performance, but on the way home. This is to be heartedly recommended, with a well-deserved 5-star rating.

The Mayflower Theatre is close to railway links with a variety of car parks close-by. It is advisable to check the nearby Southampton football club fixtures as this can have a huge impact on the volume of traffic entering/leaving Southampton. Do allow for this when travelling to the venue. The theatre itself is due for refurbishment next year, but the seating and interior were still clean and well-maintained. Staff are very courteous and welcoming; a credit to the theatre.

Rating: 5/5

Tickets cost from £15 to £49.50 (booking fees may apply).

Die Fledermaus is at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton from 19-21 October 2017, for more information or to book tickets visit www.mayflower.org.uk or call the box office on 02380 711811.

Mayflower Theatre, Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1GE | 02380 711811