"Wolf" / "Suspense" / "Carmen"

Two theatre-reviewing assignments this week: my first visit of the year to The Other Room for a show in their Springe Fringe season of curated work – Lewis Doherty’s “Wolf” – a clever one-man parody action movie; and “An Evening Of… Suspense” – two classic American radio plays, including “Sorry, Wrong Number”, at the Atrium.

 

Lewis Doherty as "Wolf" (photo: Geraint Lewis)

In between, I took advantage of the rare opportunity to see an opera I’ve always wanted to  – Bizet’s “Carmen” from the Welsh National Opera at the Wales Millennium Centre (from the cheapest of cheap, restricted view tickets, in the upper circle). And a beautiful experience it was too, in Jo Davies’ production, apparently set in 1970s Brazil. Julia Mintzer was compellingly sexy as the titular temptress, but Peter Auty as soldier Don José and Giorgio Caoduru as Escamillo, the bullfighter she abandons him for were also hugely impressive, as was Elin Pritchard, making her home debut as the disregarded Micaëla. Timeless melodies, of course, teeing us up for the startlingly violent conclusion. Hopefully not the first major ambition I’ll achieve this year.