Riders To The Sea

Review by Cal

⭐⭐⭐

Following a family tormented by grief, Riders to the Sea is a haunting tale of love and loss. Based on JM Synge’s play of the same name, Michael Betteridge has reimagined the original 1937 opera score for new instruments. 

OperaUpClose is a national touring opera company with storytelling, partnership, and innovation at its heart. Here, they take Riders to the Sea and reinvent it with their unique performance style; merging live performance, recorded sound, and projections - the performance is even captioned throughout as part of the production design, actively making it more accessible to a wider audience.

Opening from the perspective of Bartley, a seemingly minor character, an intense and emotional tone for the performance is quickly set. This atmosphere is kept consistent for the most part of the production but becomes somewhat tired. With few highs and lows in the direction, the storytelling occasionally falls short in moments that are overflowing with deeply evocative potential. 

When focus shifts to Maurya, portrayed by Lauren Young, you too get lost in a sea of vocals and an unmatched emotional complexity. Young’s understanding of a grief stricken mother is utterly breathtaking from beginning to end. 

Although minimal; the set design, or lack there of, feels very intentional. Sheer white curtains that act as the backdrop for the projections of moving water surround the family home onstage, thus mirroring the loss that this family has endured to the sea. It’s a harrowing reminder that grief is all around us. 

Due to the use of projections throughout the show, there’s little to note about the use of lighting separately. However, near to the end of the show, there are some notable moments of darkness and shadows that bring you deeper into the story. Near the end, the cracked side wall births a warm light fades with the music and allows audiences to bathe in the stillness and silence before the bows. 

Riders to the Sea is a unique theatrical experience that plays at MAST Mayflower Studios through to February 1st before setting sail on tour (which ends in March).