Hamer Hall, Arts Centre Melbourne
September 14, 2018

What a bittersweet night of opera this was: sweet because the musicianship and drama of Victorian Opera’s The Capulets and the Montagues concert was so satisfying that a fully staged performance’s costumes, sets and props were not missed; bitter in that it was a one-off, and the last of the company’s annual Bellini operas in concert that began in 2014. Having been given a good taste of the bel canto repertoire, which has otherwise been sadly neglected here in recent years, Melbourne is now left wanting more.

Jessica Pratt and Caitlin Hulcup. Photo © Charlie Kinross

First performed in Venice in 1830, I Capuleti e i Montecchi is similar to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, but mostly draws on a 16th century novella, Giulietta e Romeo. The key roles are reduced to five: the star-crossed lovers, who ultimately die in each other’s arms in that familiar scene of tragedy brought on by poison, a death-like sleeping potion and miscommunication; Giulietta’s father, Capellio; her fiance, Tebaldo; and the doctor, Lorenzo.

The first notes immediately marked this as a concert with class. The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra produced a full, lustrous...