United Kingdom Britten, Billy Budd: Soloists, Children’s Chorus (chorus master: Nicholas Mulroy), The Glyndebourne Chorus (chorus director: Aidan Oliver), London Philharmonic Orchestra / Nicholas Carter (conductor). Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Lewes, East Sussex, 5.7.2026. (JR)
One of the (few) problems an opera critic frequently faces is finding alternative superlatives for review titles; too often we come up with ‘magnificent’, ‘splendid’, ‘spellbinding’ and the like. Well, they all apply, in abundance, for this simply marvellous revival (by Ian Rutherford) of Michael Grandage’s 2010 production of Billy Budd.
Billy Budd often seems to lie in the shadow of Britten’s other great opera, Peter Grimes, particularly abroad – in non-English-speaking countries especially – where performances of Billy Budd are not as frequent; on this showing a fine performance of Billy Budd, despite its themes of brutality, evil obsession, combining with homoeroticism and Christian symbolism, can outshine Peter Grimes. It is perhaps just the mix of these themes which makes this opera so compelling, lightened only by some humour directed against the French.
When Allan Clayton first appears in the Prologue, my immediate thought was that he had stumbled into the wrong opera. He both looked and sounded like Peter Grimes, which he sang at the Royal Opera House to huge acclaim first in 2022 and then again earlier this year. Much as I greatly admire Clayton’s warm, rich, secure tenor, I don’t feel his voice (or look) is wholly suited to the part of Captain Vere; nobility is missing. Of course Peter Pears’s light lyric tenor, in the original 1951 version, is a special case and not everyone takes to Pears’s reedy, nasal timbre. Clayton found it hard to convey his inner breakdown, torn between duty and compassion.
The set is stunning, a cross-section of a great 18th-century fighting ship, showing lower deck, mid-deck and top- deck; Grandage’s production is highly theatrical and does not shirk from showing the audience the hellish circumstances in which the ordinary, often press-ganged, seamen lived.
Glyndebourne performances are always meticulously rehearsed and that was evidenced at every level. The chorus were magnificent and lusty, the children’s chorus – taken from the Trinity Boys Choir – firm and secure (no wonder with Nicholas Mulroy training them along with his wife Annie, and his young teenage son Michael amongst his charges). Nicholas took over the Trinity Boys Choir in 2024.
All the soloists impressed. Notable were Thomas Mole as Billy Budd himself. A Classic FM Rising Star last year, his voice was rich and secure, and his athleticism from deck to deck enviable. Dingle Yandell as Mr. Redburn sounded and looked the part, a warm and well-projected baritone: no surprise he was a founder of VOCES8. I have heard him frequently and never cease to be greatly impressed.
Sam Carl as Master-at-arms Claggart looked more like a Squeak than a Claggart, but his black, sonorous bass was perfect for the role and his psychological soliloquy highlighted his twisted, repressed attraction to the innocent young sailor. The audience were transfixed. Lighting designer Paule Constable played her part.
Making fine vocal impressions too were Laurence Kilsby as the Novice and William Thomas as Mr. Flint. This was, however, very much a team effort, the soloists and chorus giving their all. Bringing it all together perfectly was conductor Nicholas Carter who is about to become Music Director at the Staatsoper in Stuttgart. Let us hope he can bring Billy Budd to Baden-Württemberg. The London Philharmonic Orchestra did not put a foot wrong, thrilling throughout especially in the scene where the cannons are rolled out to fire at the enemy – the auditorium shook.
I urge you to battle through the traffic on the M25 (or take the train) down to the foot of the glorious, bucolic South Downs to witness one of the many remaining performances of this fine opera; you will not regret it as long as you leave early. Enjoy the beautiful gardens, a picnic on one of the lawns and an evening of opera you will not forget.
John Rhodes
Featured Image: Michael Grandage’s production of Billy Budd© GFO/Tristram Kenton
Cast:
Captain Vere – Allan Clayton
First Mate – Michael Wallace
Second Mate – John Mackenzie-Lavansch
Mr. Flint – William Thomas
Bosun – Michael Ronan
Donald – Samuel Dale Johnson
Maintop – Ru Charlesworth
Novice – Laurence Kilsby
Squeak – Daniel Norman
Mr. Redburn – Dingle Yandell
Lieutenant Radcliffe – Daniel Okulitch
Claggart – Sam Carl
Red Whiskers – Alasdair Elliott
Arthur Jones – Adam Marsden
Billy Budd – Thomas Mole
Novice’s friend – Alex Otterburn
Dansker – Clive Bayley
Cabin Boy – Gabriel Elliott Rous
Production:
Director – Michael Grandage
Revival Director – Ian Rutherford
Designer – Christopher Oram
Lighting designer – Paule Constable
Fight director – Mark Ruddick