SIEGFRIED AND ROY: An Unauthorised Opera - World Premiere Sydney Festival Exclusive

Christopher Tonkin (Siegfried Fischbacher) - Kanen Breen (Roy Horn) in "Siegfried" -
Photo:Neil Bennett

 

Composed by Luke Di Somma – Libretto by Luke Di Somma and Constantine Costi

Conducted by Luke Di Somma – Directed by Constantine Costi

Movement Direction by Shannon Burns – Set and Prop Design by Pip Runciman

Costume Design by Tim Chappel – Lighting Design by Damien Cooper

Sound Design by Michael Waters – Puppet Design by Erth Visual & Physical

Sydney Theatre Company, Wharf 1 Theatre. 8 – 25^th January 2025.

Performance on January 14^th reviewed by BILL STEPHENS.

 

It’s hard to think of a more perfect subject for an opera than the story of Las Vegas entertainers Siegfried and Roy. Their lives, lived on a grand scale, were as illusionary as the feats of magic with which they intrigued audience throughout their stellar careers.

Yet it’s taken the imaginations of a couple of creatives from down under, both with impressive operatic chops, Luke Di Somma (Music) and Constantine Costi (Direction), to recognise the potential of their story and bring it to the stage as a sung-through, tragicomedy opera (their description).

German magicians and entertainers Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn, met on a cruise ship and began performing magic together as Siegfried and Roy on the European nightclub circuit. Their act involved a white tiger. 

Christopher Tonkin (Siegfried) - Kanen Breen (Roy) at the beginning of their careers.
Photo: Wendell Teodoro.

  In 1967 they were spotted by an American entrepreneur who enticed them to Las Vegas, where by 1990, they had established themselves as Las Vegas legends, headlining their lavish show, which by now involved a pride of white tigers, lions and even a disappearing elephant employing no fewer than 267 cast and crew, which I saw at the Mirage Casino in 2001.

Publicly living a life of operatic proportions, Siegfried and Roy shrouded their private lives and lavish lifestyle in a manufactured mystique that echoed the mystery and magic of their extraordinary Las Vegas extravaganza.  

However, in 2003 their careers, though apparently not their partnership, came to a sudden halt when on his 59^th birthday, during their act at the Mirage, Roy was sensationally mauled by his favourite white tiger, Mantacore in an incident so catastrophic for Roy that the show had to be closed down.

Di Somma and Costi have managed to compress their remarkable story into a tight 90-minute tragicomedy performed without interval, which succeeds in   capturing the essence and spectacle of Siegfried and Roy’s stage show, while cleverly alluding to some of the less savoury aspects of the price paid for their lives at the pinnacle of show-biz.  

The show commences with Siegfried and Roy being introduced at the end of their careers with Siegfried supporting Roy as he struggles to take a bow at his 60^th Birthday Party.

As Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn, Christopher Tonkin and Kanen Breen, both fine opera singers, brilliantly create unforgettable characters who dazzle on the surface but leave an aftertaste of seediness, especially with their startling but very funny sex scene which they accomplish with considerable aplomb.

Having been introduced the duo disappear in a swirl of their voluminous cloaks as the action reverts to 1947 where Roy is discovered performing simple magic tricks at the beginning of his career.

Christopher Tonkin (Siegfried) - Kanen Breen (Roy) - Kirby Myers (Showgirl) with Mantacore.
Photo: Neil Bennett

The details of how Roy acquires the tiger,  Mantacore, the third ominous character in their story,  then later persuades Siegfried, to whom he is immediately attracted after watching him performing advanced illusions on a cruise liner, to join him in a double act;  then  how their act at the Folies Bergere in Paris attracts the attention of the Rainier’s in Monaco, eventually leading to an invitation to perform in Las Vegas, and the fateful performance that ended their careers, are all enacted in a series of clever vignettes  devised and directed  by Costi.

A small ensemble of multi-talented opera singers, mostly alumni of Opera Australia, portray the major movers and shakers in the lives of Siegfried and Roy for whom only the names have been changed. 

Russell Harcourt (Ensemble) - Danielle Bavli (Tabby Chateaubriand) - Simon Lobelson (Randy Reggiano) - Louise Hurley (Tyler D"Amor) - Cathy-Di Zhang (Nancy White) 
Photo Wendell Teodoro

  

Danielle Bavli portrays an ambitious social climber, Tabby Chateaubriand.  Louis Hurley is Roy’s young protégé and lover, Tyler D’Amor.  Simon Lobelson portrays an opportunistic agent, Randy Reggiano, who attracts the pair to Les Vegas, while Cathy-Di Zhang, surely the only soprano ever to sing a stratospheric aria while cut in half, portrays their manager and confidant, Nancy White.  

Kanen Breen (Siegfried) - Christopher Tonkin (Roy) with the singing half of Cathy-Di Zhang (Nancy White) -  Photo - Wendell Teodoro.

Russell Harcourt provides the voice of Mantacore, while Kirby Myers, besides her role as a leggy showgirl, assists puppeteer Tomas Ramaili breathe life into the amazing adult tiger puppet that is Mantacore.  

Following the well-worn path of many acclaimed opera composers, Di Somma has included references to composers of the ilk of Wagner, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sondheim to create a compelling, accessible score which captures the grandeur of opera as well as  the ambiance of a Las Vegas showroom, while providing testing arias to showcase the powerful voices of both Tonkin and Breen, as well as a series of clever choruses for the excellent on-stage ensemble.

Particularly notable throughout is the clarity of the diction of all the singers, which allowed Di Somma and Costi’s clever libretto to be enjoyed without the need for surtitles, as was the attention to detail of composer, Di Somma, who conducted the impressive orchestral ensemble himself.

Another surprising aspect of this production was how quickly it established itself as a serious opera rather than the clever satirical romp it could have so easily have been.

Costi has exhibited directorial brilliance by keeping a tight rein on his concept to maintain a high camp ambiance demanded by the storyline, while creating believable, entertaining characters.    

By surrounding himself with brilliant collaborators, in sync with his concept, he has been able to successfully tell a larger-than-life story with comparatively limited resources.

Christopher Tonkin (Siegfried) - Danielle Bavli (Grace Kelly Rainier) - Mantacore
Kanen Breen (Roy) - Kirby Myers (Showgirl/puppeteer) - Photo:Neil Bennett

Drawing on the lighting wizardry of Damien Cooper, set and property designer, Pip Runciman has achieved miracles by successfully transforming the Wharf 1 theatre into an approximation of a Las Vegas showroom, incorporating glittering chandeliers, cabaret seating, glowing table lamps, proscenium arches and  thrust stage in an arrangement that facilitates dazzling quick changes in time and locale, almost as impressive as Adam Mada’s skilfully accomplished large-scale illusions.

Tim Chappel’s costumes wittily combine glamour and gaudiness in equal measure, while the amazing puppets created by Erth Visual & Physical to portray Roy’s tiger, Mantacore, first as a kitten, then fully-grown, manage to steal every scene in which they appear.  

With “Siegfried and Roy”, Luke Di Somma and Constantine Costi together with their cast and creatives have achieved a hugely entertaining telling of a remarkable story about two German magicians who lived an extraordinary life of smoke and mirrors almost as magical as their illusions.  

However, they’ve also created a remarkable opera which deserves to be seen by a wider audience than those fortunate enough to experience it during this comparatively short premiere season. 

An edited version of this review was  first published in the digital edition of CITY NEWS on 20.01.25.