DIDO AND AENEAS

Dido and Aeneas, written in the late seventeenth century, was Henry Purcell’s only true opera, and probably intended for the English court. Dealing with the classical subject of the Trojan Aeneas’s love for Dido, the Queen of Carthage, it offers a Baroque music experience, which Opera Queensland presents in collaboration with Circa – Queensland’s leading circus group. The result is dynamism of physicality and emotional intensity.

As the muscular bodies of the circus performers move through gravity defying acrobatics, the physical strain of their movement becomes a visualization of emotions through body. The tormented whirlwind is represented by the tissue performer above the soaring voice of Dido. Dido’s concern for Aeneas is poised on the backdrop of a tightrope walker, emphasizing the tension she feels. The Chinese poles create ‘corridors’ with the acrobats suggesting an alternative dimension of movement, the world of the witches. The audience is presented with emotions on the outside – raw, colourful, and intense.

This production seamlessly blends art forms together. The acrobats demonstrate the precision of movement with bodies flying through space, while the singers convey this physical precision in the acrobatics of their voices. Opera Queensland voices are rich in texture and powerful to match the physicality of the Circa performers. Anna Dowsley (Dido) steals the show with her commanding presence. In the black sparkle dress and the femme fatale hairstyle, she is feline and perilous, yet also fragile and feminine. There is no better way to capture the combination of doom and destiny that is love in opera.

The exposed physicality and rawness of emotion is conveyed in every aspect of this production. The costumes seamlessly blend the singers with the acrobats, interconnecting the physical and the emotional into one whole. The acrobats’ bare legs convey strength, as we can see the muscles tightening under strain. Yet the bareness also suggests vulnerability and reminds us that we are watching a human struggle. As the opera progresses, human mountains, pyramids and aerials grow in risk and difficulty into three-tiered body constructions, risky acrobatics, and challenges to traditional pairings. Is that a woman lifting a man? Sometimes a man needs the strength of a woman beside him.

This is not the first collaboration between Opera Queensland and Circa, and I hope it is not the last! Their combined efforts only multiply their strengths, bringing powerful spectacles to life that have the durability to stay with the audience for a long time.

Dido and Aeneas is at QPAC’s Playhouse until 27 July 2024.