Pleasure, opera review: Eminently theatrical, but something is missing

Mark Simpson is a talented young man.

He made history when, in 2006, he won both the BBC Young Musician and the BBC/Guardian Young Composer competitions. Now, at the age of 27, he has unveiled his first opera, Pleasure, co-commissioned by the Royal Opera and here receiving its London premiere in Tim Albery’s unfussy production. With its ornamental grandeur, the Lyric makes a paradoxically appropriate location for an opera set in the toilets of a gay club, although not many clubs can afford to have a 10-piece orchestra (Manchester-based Psappha) playing on a balcony above the gents.

Simpson’s opera is compact; it lasts 75 minutes and has a cast of four, plus occasional pre-recorded choral interjections. Economy is fine, but it still requires action and interaction. Too much of Melanie Challenger’s libretto consists of interior monologues that, sitting heavy on the singing voice, give little sense of nightclub buzz and bustle. The basic premise is eminently theatrical: Val is a kindly lavatory attendant to whom the much younger clubbers turn for advice and solace. One, Matthew, earnestly seeks sex and love. Another, Nathan, has an obscure relationship with Val and seems reluctant to respond to Matthew’s advances.

Flitting in and out, Anna is a drag queen past her prime. Sung with salacious glee by Steven Page, she enlivens proceedings with two cabaret numbers, sung with a microphone, which allows Page to escape the fetters of modern operatic style that rather restrict the other singers. Lesley Garrett is convincing as Val, who can’t quite fathom the world around her, but the would-be lovers, sung by Timothy Nelson and Nick Pritchard, have less to get their teeth into. Hovering almost invisibly, the orchestra, conducted by Nicholas Kok, provides the emotional maelstrom that the text doesn’t always deliver.

Until Saturday, Lyric (020 8741 6850, lyric.co.uk)

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