The start of its new season finds English National Opera advertising for a new director while the circumstances surrounding the ousting of former boss Nicholas Payne are still unclear and speculation about the company's future is rife. It also finds it, gratifyingly, getting back to business.
Continuing its build-up to a complete staged cycle, ENO is presenting three of the four operas that make up Wagner's Ring at the Barbican, its temporary home while the London Coliseum undergoes renovations. These are not-quite-concert performances - the singers are costumed, though all in black, and they act to the front rather than each other. None the less, this Rhinegold reminded us that a new Ring cycle should be an exciting prospect.
The casting, though, is rather uneven, as it was for last year's performances of The Valkyrie: ENO is relying too much on young, promising singers when, even in small roles, strong mature voices are required. But there were no serious weak links, and two central performances really lifted the evening. The shifty demigod Loge is a gift of a role for Tom Randle, who, as ever, had the audience on his side the moment he walked on stage.
Andrew Shore was dramatically superb as the villain, Alberich, only needing to save something vocally for his final curse. He could have had more help from the orchestra here; indeed, the conductor Paul Daniel could take still more care over some of the details of the score, but he paced it well and for most of the evening the orchestra pulled out the stops for him.
Next to Randle and Shore, Robert Hayward's Wotan seemed impassive, at times almost bewildered. But he has the vocal authority for the role, and a strong directorial hand should sort out the rest.
Purists may hate the idea of Wagner being sung in anything but German, but what makes this Rhinegold special is what makes ENO special - the fact that it is sung in English. In Jeremy Sams's direct and communicative translation, with almost all of the words audible, it really does work. With the future of ENO as a by-definition English-language company looking uncertain, it was a timely reminder that this is its real raison d'etre.
