Review of ‘Mr. Punch at the Opera’: “You’ll get a kick, but still makes no good fist”

The 2024 edition of the Grimeborn Festival brings the classical genre closer to the youngest viewers, through this panto-style remake of Pergolesi’s La Serva Padrona. Guillermo Nazara shares his views on the show, to let us know if this camp initiation to classical music made him change his tune.

It’s not that often that you go to see a classical  show where its target audience can screech higher than its leading lady. But you just need to remember rule number one about theatre to realize that unpredictability is its middle name. Yesterday’s matinee performance at the Arcola Theatre could however be dropped into the exception box – at least, as for what’s to expect from an audience whose enthusiasm is as volatile as their baby teeth.

Everything you would imagine (and perhaps, fear) from a kid-studded public was there: loud cheering, restless clapping, and a whole lot of unrequested interactions. If art is meant to trigger a reaction, this might as well be it – except, perhaps, that there may be more emotions that stayed untriggered and fewer aspects to leave untouched.

Enter Mr. Punch at the Opera, a showcase of pure pantoperatic silliness, designed to lure the youngest ones into the realm of stagy fantasy. A marvelous concept that easily meets its primary intentions, it’s however its further possibilities that look either as if sometimes overlooked or, more often and most sadly, completely ignored.

Devised as an abridged, family-friendly revision of Pergolesi’s La Serva Padrona, the piece introduces us to an absurd (and rather questionable) romantic story – with an even more debatable cautionary tale that makes you wonder if its morally ambiguous plot is too suitable for children, despite the ridiculous tone it’s presented with. In addition, though capable of bringing out a few laughters, its generally slapstick humour occasionally feels as if shoved into the narrative with very little justification – in the end, leaving us with the sensation that many of its elements have been jammed altogether in haste, relying on a formula that’s effective in the short-term, but not honed or strong enough to build anything sparkling; let alone, memorable.

In any case, the production still holds a few values worthy of praise – able, to some extent, to even out the bumps the writing creates along the road. Relying on a three-part cast consisting of two singers and a puppeteer, the company is, by far, the most solid asset of the entire montage – exuding bewitching rapport and infectious stamina, as well as flaunting highly competent vocals, which on baritone Matthew Kellett’s side, are next to astounding.

A remarkable first step from both a creator and spectator’s perspective, Mr Punch at the Opera sets the basis for a reimagined world of beauty and laughter – which, if given the proper strokes, could end up painting a whole canvas of opportunities to enthrall long-time opera devotees and fresh newcomers alike – no matter the number of white hairs or wrinkles on their faces. It’s a superb starting point that brings a genre thought as elitist to, actually, one of the toughest kinds of audience. But to keep that proximity, it shouldn’t deviate too much from the essence of childlike wonder.

Mr. Punch at the Opera plays at London’s Arcola Theatre until 24 September. Tickets are available on the following link. 

By Guillermo Nazara