Project 60 - Number 32 - An Opera at Drottningholm

Drottningholm (literally Queen's Island, but let that pass) is the name of what was originally the summer palace of the Swedish Royal family and is the official residence of the King and Queen on a year round basis. Several of the guides we had on holiday made a point of telling us that the royal family has, between its members, no fewer than eleven official residences, maintained by the Swedish taxpayer, and I have to say the vibe I got was that they personally weren't all that happy about paying to keep several roofs over the head of the King's offspring when accommodation is not the cheapest thing to find in Sweden  for your average Joe.

However that may be, if you're an opera lover the word Drottningholm means only one thing - the theatre. Built in the eighteenth century like the rest of the palace the theatre was locked up one day and slowly forgotten about - until 1921 when someone opened  up the building and discovered this little gem of a theatre still with the original scenery and stage machinery all intact.

 

This link will take you to one of the most boring looking web pages ever but there are photos and some information about the theatre's origins. I first read about it in my early twenties and I've wanted to see a performance there ever since. Life and family and lack of the disposable got in the way, but finally, finally we got to see an opera there.

You're not allowed to take pictures of the inside but here's what the outside looks like

 

Operas are given here in a summer festival, not year round and they tend to specialise in Mozart and his contemporaries, which is understandable as they are contemporary with the theatre. Last year they started a cycle of the Mozart/Da Ponte operas, and we got Don Giovanni, which is probably my least favourite of the three, but that's not to say I don't enjoy it. The downside was that the director for this cycle has abjured the use of the C18 paraphernalia which was a bit of a shame (for which read extremely annoying ) since that really is The Point of going and now we will have to try and organise to go again sometime, but not next year as it will still be Not C18 Man in charge. As an aside obviously we paid for this trip as a whole package which is why, when we were handed out our tickets for Drottningholm, I felt faint. Never in my life have I paid that much for an opera ticket, never.  Not for Sydney, not for San Francisco, not for Covent Garden (even).

 

The performance was fine, full of some very energetic young singers - perhaps too young in the case of Don Giovanni himself, who didn't convince as a rake with a list of conquests as long as a giant's arm. The Ottavio was by far and away the best singer, which is perhaps not what you want to come out of a performance of Don G saying, but they were all good - you don't get to sing at Drottningholm if you're not, the orchestra was fantastic and it would have been a 5* evening had it not been for the original C18 seats which were the most uncomfortable things I have ever sat on. Benches with a very narrow cushion and precious little back support. I'm not looking forward to sitting on them again!