Benjamin Britten's Creepy "A Turn of the Screw" in Belém

Benjamin Britten's eerie chamber opera The Turn of the Screw (1954) is a ghostly, underperformed opera by one of Britain's greatest composers.  The 27 May performance in the small auditorium of the Belém Cultural center strongly communicated the creepy essence of the work. The opera is based on a Henry James 1898 Victorian-era novella about ghosts "influencing" (translate: sexually abusing) two children at a spooky English estate. Britten's opera is filled with ghostly effects like devilishly transformed versions of innocent childrens' songs, and remarkably explicit seductive behavior by Quint, a male ghost who still yearns for the the 10 year old boy he abused while he was alive and working at the estate. The libretto by Myfanwy Piper is very loyal to the James novella, yet is operatic in giving ample opportunities for the leads to shine, in particular the Governess who oversees the children and the menacing male ghost Quint who relentlessly pursues the young boy Miles. I loved his sustained, eerie chanting "Miles, Miles, Miles" filled with both threat and sexual longing--a leitmotif of the score. Britten's music is typical of his mature output, with elements of 12 tone music, but plenty of melody, and a sort of intellectual rigor that maintains structure in his works. The opera is rarely performed, at least outside the UK, perhaps because it only uses 13 orchestra players (string quintet + single winds, piano, and timpani), not enough to carry in a large opera house. Too bad, because it reveals some of Britten's best music. He nicely conveys the neurosis of Henry James' novella, written in Victorian times and suggesting but not showing sexuality. Britten was practiced at this, sadly, having to hide his homosexuality from society for many years. 

The score was well played by the chamber orchestra Orquestra Camerata Atlântica, led by conductor Cameron Burns. They handled the very exposed part writing and intricate counterpoint brilliantly. I could have used just a bit more atmospheric creepiness and tempo flexibility at times. 

The singers were variable. The singers playing the female adult roles used a bit too much vibrato for me, which clouded their expression of the English language text. Fortunately, the projected Portuguese supratitles helped me a bit (I am starting to learn the language!). The Governess is a big, difficult role, simultaneously maternal (towards the young children) and sexual (attracted to the male ghost Quint);  Susana Gaspar was effective in her acting of this complex character, but perhaps did not explore every nuance of the character. The abused children Flora and Miles are traditionally played by child singers, and need to look young to project the requisite creepiness of the plot (see the promo for a BBC version below). 

Here, instead they were played by 20-somethings. This was not a big problem with Beatriz Maia as Flora, since she had a very youthful appearance and a clear voice that made me at least imagine she was a child. More problematic was the Miles of countertenor Rui Viera. He's an experienced young performer who handled the music adeptly, but carried an adult physique and was taller than any other cast member. Also, while the countertenor (male falsetto) voice does many things well, it does not project childlike innocence effectively. Unfortunately, the fragile sexual dynamic of the opera was thrown off by a tall 20-something (not a 10 year old boy) interacting with the Governess--the dynamic veered too much into adult sexuality, not the exploration of child sexuality and abuse that Henry James and Britten intended. When Miles makes suggestive comments to the governess and rubs against her, I had the "ick" feeling of seeing a tall, attractive man portraying a child who was seducing an older woman...sort of an adult sex fantasy, not what was intended here. This casting decision rather spoiled the performance for me. 

Overall, this was a strong and fearless performance of a creepy twentieth century opera, which should be performed more, especially given the ongoing societal dialogues regarding how much to protect vs. immerse children.