And now...this! Britten's first big success. The more I think about it, the more I realize that he really is THE biggest name in English-language opera, unless you count Gilbert & Sullivan, which I've decided not to. Purcell, sure, but I just don't think he's as prominent, at least these days. Most of Britten's operas have become part of the repertoire, which is impressive for ANY mid-twentieth-century composer, let alone an English one. So that's cool.
Anyway. It's a seaside fishing town, and Peter Grimes is a fisherman whose apprentice has died at sea under somewhat murky circumstances. It's determined that the death was accidental and not Grimes' fault, but suspicion lingers among the townspeople. There's a sympathetic teacher, Ellen Orford, who tries to help him, but suspicion grows and ultimately bad stuff happens. Thus we have what the host, Natalie Dessay, characterizes as "the sad, horrible story of Peter Grimes." I dunno; it's definitely not a comedy, but I don't know that I'd say it's more "horrible" than your average operatic tragedy. Then again, maybe they're all horrible! Maybe we just like a horrible artform! Who can say?!?
What's interesting to me is that Grimes is a really ambiguous character in ways you don't normally see in opera. You generally know where you stand with operatic characters, or at least find out fairly quickly, but not so here. You never really see inside his head or know exactly what he's thinking, and it's far from obvious that he's innocent of the crime he's accused of; he's obviously not mentally well and subject to fits of rage. He may not deserve what he gets, exactly, but he's certainly not a complete innocent. What with this uncertainty, I would call this one of the most modernist operas I've seen, at least storywise.
After seeing it, I'm definitely a fan of Britten. It didn't take much. To my untrained ear, the music sounds somewhere between the atonality of a Berg and a more traditionally melodic romantic sound. He's very good at choral music, and he's able to evoke the wildness of the ocean in a way I haven't seen since Der fliegende Holländer. This Met production is great in all ways, but especially in the way of Anthony Dean Griffey, who acts the hell out of Grimes. He has a climactic mad scene--something you don't normally see with male characters, and it's great.
Dang. As noted, most of Britten's operas are widely performed and readily available, so I look forward to exploring his career.
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