King Arthur show mixes opera, magic in 'massive spectacle'
Opera Nova Scotia and Zuppa Theatre pair up for 'delightful and fantastical' performance
A restoration opera about King Arthur is being resurrected in Halifax, demanding performers be accomplished in opera, acting and magic.
Opera Nova Scotia has teamed up with the Zuppa Theatre Co. for a project that "springs from the mind of Dr. Walter Kemp, who's the artistic director of Opera Nova Scotia," said Ben Stone, play director and Zuppa Theatre founding member.
Stone told CBC Radio's Mainstreet that this is the second collaboration, adding when he first saw the script and music, he thought it seemed "huge."
"It's a massive spectacle, which depends on dozens and dozens of dancers coming in and out, huge set pieces, lavish design from costume — and the music is stacked full of instrumentation and singers," he said.
'Delightful and fantastical'
Restoration opera comes from the late 1600s, when England was leaving a period of restraint and heading into a more colourful era. Operas from this time tend to be elaborate.
Stone joked he didn't have nearly as much access to money for the production as a king would. As a result, he said staging had to be scaled back to how it was originally envisioned back in the late 1600s.
"To wrap our heads around it, we had to bring it down to our scale...and make it a more manageable, but equally delightful and fantastical event," Stone said.
'Big shoes to fill'
King Arthur will be presented Friday, May 20 and Saturday May 21 at 7 p.m. at the Sir James Dunn Theatre at the Dalhousie Arts Centre.
Dalhousie University theatre student Sam Vigneault plays King Arthur, his first big shot at playing the lead in a production of this scale.
"I was very excited," Vigneault said. "Beforehand, I was like, King Arthur's pretty big shoes to fill."
He doesn't do any of the opera singing, that's the job of some other performers.
Merlin versus Grimbald
The show features five actors, 16 soloists and choristers, a band of 12 professional orchestral players and a harpsichordist. It also blends in modern technological touches, such as visual projections and live video.
And for fans of the fantastical, Stone said there's a "spell off" between two wizards.
Merlin, King Arthur's wizard, goes head to head with Grimbald, wizard of invading Saxons.
"There's an enchanted grove where they do spells on each other," Stone said.
No ‛Disney stuff‛
Vigneault said he didn't know much about King Arthur before taking on this project, though he saw The Sword and the Stone as a kid.
"I thought originally it was going to be about that, but I learned that there's a lot of folklore surrounding King Arthur," he said.
Stone said it's interesting the story of King Arthur has endured for so long.
"We don't know if he actually existed, or if it's just made up," the director said.
"This [performance] doesn't focus on any of that Disney stuff."
With files from CBC Mainstreet