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Trinity Laban Opera’s production of Thea Musgrave’s A Christmas Carol is warmly received

Thu 20 December 2018

The Trinity Laban Opera production of Thea Musgrave’s A Christmas Carol has been warmly received by theatre and opera critics.

Writing on London Theatre 1,  Chris Omaweng gave the performance 4 stars and described it as “a curious and captivating production”.

In another 4 star review, this one for Broadway World, Gary Naylor commented: “One is impressed by the sheer scale of the enterprise, the discipline of everyone involved and the huge talents it showcases.” He praised “the rich voice of Sandeep Gurrapadi as Bob Cratchit and powerful Megan Linnell as Martha Cratchit”, along with “Scrooge himself, played by Giuseppe Pellingra, whose boxer’s physique and gait give him a glowering, menacing stage presence, especially alongside the equally impressive Lars Fischer as Marley’s Ghost.”

Naylor went on to praise the costumes as “wonderfully well observed, giving a real West End look to the production”, and concluded: “The show entertains from start to finish”.

Opera Today’s Claire Seymour praised the “strong characterisation” and wrote that “Giuseppe Pellingra’s Ebenezer Scrooge trod a convincing path from bullying to benevolence, acting courageously with voice, body and soul. He found a range of colours to convey the miser’s belligerence and spitefulness, his baritone glowing with a darkness that cowered Scrooge’s employees.”

Finally, in his review for The Weekender, Michael Holland concluded: “This is something for the purists and the curious. I was curious and was glad I went. … At the end of the night I knew I’d seen something quite special.”

Find out more about vocal studies at Trinity Laban.