First presented in 2016 and now revived twice at Grange Park’s West Horsley address, this Don Carlo retains all of Verdi’s dark solemnities, and with Jo Davies’ removal of the original Fontainebleau scenes, her production is modelled on the composer’s more compact four act version of 1884.
An oppressive atmosphere is established at the start with Leslie Travers’s inverted V shaped set to bring a powerful sense of physical and spiritual containment. No less restrictive are the brutalist walls that variously enclose the trappings of church and state; a windowless chapel, palace and prison, within which political expedience and private passion play out along with the rivalry between Philip II of Spain and his son Carlos. A solitary tree, boxed in by a glass frame, does for Elizabeth de Valois’s garden, the open sky left to our imagination. Meanwhile, Anna Watson’s flickering candles provide ominous shadows, while Gabrielle Dalton’s mostly period costumes (plus a wardrobe malfunction of contemporary attire) alludes to the historical context of late 16th century Spain and its domination of the Netherlands.
Inevitably, this purpose-built country house presentation is a scaled back affair, with reduced choral and orchestral forces where success largely rests on the interaction between the principal characters. One misses the choral extravagance and eye-catching spectacle for the auto-da-fé scene, but the arrangement of the modest chorus on two levels works well, even if the burning of condemned heretics doesn’t have the dramatic punch one might expect from a more generously proportioned opera house where scene changes might be more efficiently managed.
But niggles aside with sagging momentum and limited resources, the singing impressed and provided all the drama that felt missing elsewhere. As Philip II, Matthew Rose brings a commanding stage presence and charcoal tones to this tormented autocrat, suitably feeble when lamenting his failure to be loved by his wife, his regret and loneliness movingly portrayed and mirrored in the beguiling cello writing. A musical highlight. No less sonorous are the oceanic tones of Julian Close as the sinister Grand Inquisitor, perhaps too frail to be truly intimating as he lurches across the stage on two sticks.
In the title role, Otar Jorjikia’s baritonal tenor resounds across the stage. If not always yielding in colour and dynamic, he makes the most of his portrait of a man striving for personal and political freedom while failing in both. He is at his most convincing in ensemble passages, especially rewarding when singing with Rodrigo in the rousing ‘Dio, che nell’alma infondere’ where he and Michel de Souza form a brotherhood to advance Flemish freedom. And de Souza’s warm baritone is perfectly suited to Rodrigo, his farewell aria to Carlos as heartfelt and lyrical as one could wish.
Amongst the women, Ruxandra Donose as the scheming lady-in waiting Princess Eboli (reprising this role from the 2016 and 2019 productions) brings a steely athleticism to her Veil aria and anguish in a vocally sumptuous ‘O don fatale’ drawing our sympathy for this self-serving character. And to Elisabeth, the Queen consort, Elin Pritchard is the epitome of royalty, poised and determined to transcend her emotional conflicts, displaying all her artistry in her grief-stricken ‘Tu che le vanità’. And last, but not least, Rosa Sparks is a winning Voice of Heaven her purity of tone soaring over the audience in her song assuring redemption for heretics.
In the pit, Gianluca Marciano is unfailingly sensitive to Verdi’s dark colouring, outlining expressive opportunities for intimacy and suggesting grandeur, even when the latter is necessarily limited. The ever-reliable Orchestra of English National Opera are on fine form, the brass playing especially atmospheric, and the whole nicely detailed and characterful.
David Truslove
Don Carlo
Music: Guiseppe Verdi
Libretto: Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, after Schiller
Cast and Production:
Philip II, King of Spain – Matthew Rose; Don Carlos – Otar Jorjikia; Rodrigo – Michel de Souza; The Grand Inquisitor – Julian Close; Elisabeth de Valois – Elin Pritchard; Princess Eboli – Ruxandra Donose; Monk – Harrison Chéné-Gration; Tebaldo – Claire Pendleton; Voice of Heaven – Rosa Sparks
Director – Jo Davies; Designer – Leslie Travers; Costumes – Gabrielle Dalton; Lighting – Anna Watson; Movement – Lynne Hockney; Fight Director – Alison de Burgh; Conductor – Gianluca Marciano.
Grange Park Opera, West Horsley, Surrey, 6 June 2026
Top image: Elisabeth (Elin Pritchard), King Philip II (Matthew Rose), Tebaldo (Claire Pendleton), Rodrigo (Michel de Souza), Princess Eboli (Ruxandra Donose)
All photos © Marc Brenner