"I thoroughly enjoyed this Puccini double bill.
I look forward to seeing more productions.......
from this excellent new company." Philip Rose, West Briton
"First class production from a fledgling opera company....
We can expect great things ahead." Western Morning News
"To have two Puccini masterpieces in one evening performed by
such talent is a wonderful start for the new company."
"John Hobbs dominates the opera in the
lead part, singing and acting with great
subtlety, humour and versatility.
Jonathan Stoughton as Rinuccio brings
real Italianate flavour to his aria...." Michael Swift, Leisure Briton
"I was particularly impressed by the NCO chorus....smooth unison breaking into
well-balanced part singing." Eric Dare
"New Cornwall Opera's production of ... was described as "semi-staged" - and
what a stage! ....the venue provided an intimacy and enabled us to hear the words that are often lost in the bigger auditorium." Eric Dare, West Briton of Die Fledermaus
"I felt that in this first full-length opera the young NCO has come of age..." Eric Dare on 'Figaro' at Trelissick
Frank Ruhrmund writing in The Cornishman about "Carmen"
“PLAYING to a full house on an opening night which had every chance of being a case of singing in the rain, but, in the event and astonishingly enough, was bone dry and lit by both the sun and the moon, the New Cornwall Opera brought in Georges Bizet’s masterpiece Carmen, which has been called ‘the most exhausted old warhorse in the operatic stable’, at the gallop and past the winning post in style. Director Brian Odgers uses the Minack itself to advantage, deploys his large cast with skill, presents us with a series of entrances, exits and eye-catching set pieces that are visually exciting and, despite the fact that there is no smoke, with the cigarettes of the girls who work in the tobacco factory remaining unlit, presumably in keeping with today’s law of the land, comes up with a production in which there is plenty of fire. A distillation of Prosper Merimee’s novella and Bizet’s music, a tale of blood and sand, love and lust, which must, inevitably, lead to tragedy, helped by Kathy Brown’s colourful set design, and the balanced playing of the orchestra under the baton of Bea Geddes, it captures the full flavour of pagan and passionate 19th century Spain. And that’s without mention of the seeming cast of thousands who, from the children who strut their stuff with enviable energy and enthusiasm to the sultry cigarette girls, gypsies, soldiers and smugglers, of the chorus, to the principals, are all on top form. While Simone Hellier (Frasquita), Laura Nicholas (Mercedes), John Hobbs (Dancairo), Derek Rowse (Remendado), Ian While (Zuniga), Clive Brown (Morales) and Angela Thomas (Lillas Pastia) are all good: and Maria Gay as the selfless Michaela, Gary Tucker as the celebrity toreador Escamillo, and Matt Eva as the lovelorn, tormented Don Jose, who have more to do and are even better, singing with all the power and lure of sirens, it is Louise Merrifield, who as the flirtatious and feisty, sultry and sexy Carmen conquers all and, as it were, takes the bull by both horns and has to be afforded its ears. From the town square of Seville to Lillas Pastia’s tavern, from mountain pass to bull ring, from its first trumpet call, courtesy of bugler Will Finch, to its last duet of the doomed lovers Carmen and Don Jose, New Cornwall Opera’s version of Carmen merits the many cries of ‘Ole’ and ‘Bravo’ it is certain to receive.”