Fidelio review – Opera North triumphs with electrifying take on Beethoven's radical opera

Opera North’s Fidelio went ahead in the teeth of the region’s tight pandemic restrictions. The concert performance, recorded in an empty Leeds Town Hall and available to stream, proved much more than merely a victory over challenging circumstances. The musical lineup had always looked pretty special on anyone’s terms, and the musicians duly delivered a gripping operatic experience in which every aspect of the show seemed to come together.

What made the impact so strong? There was, of course, the excitement of a British company performing a major opera again after so long. There was the appropriateness of this particular opera, performed just days before Beethoven’s 250th anniversary. Then there was the electrifying reminder, in Mark Wigglesworth’s reading, of how brilliant a piece Fidelio is, and of how radical Beethoven’s imprisonment subject still is today. Last, but by no means least, there was the tingle factor of a live performance that contained so much committed and first-rate playing and singing.

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All of this was enhanced by the scrapping of all the spoken dialogue, which was replaced by David Pountney’s concise narrations, spoken by the opera’s deus ex machina Don Ferrando, played by Matthew Stiff. Matthew Eberhardt’s minimalist staging and Mike Lock’s lighting combined to give the performance a tautness and unity that seemed in turn to draw the best from the black-clad soloists and the conductor.

As Leonore, Rachel Nicholls sang with formidable technique and disciplined intensity, and created a Leonora who really felt like a flesh and blood hero. Toby Spence was an ardent and moving Florestan, her wrongfully imprisoned husband. Robert Hayward and, in particular, Brindley Sherratt brought experience, presence and craft to the brutal governor Pizarro and the kindly warder Rocco. Fflur Wyn’s lovely lyricism as Marzelline stood out, and Oliver Johnston was an engaging Jaquino. Wigglesworth conducted his reduced 33-piece orchestra and the 24-strong chorus with his customary flow and authority. If there had been an audience, they would have been on their feet at the end.