THE THREEPENNY OPERA
November 1988
 

Cumbernauld News – November 9^th 1988 “New look for opera”   1 | 2 | Top

A new version of “The Threepenny Opera” by Bertolt Brecht will be staged at Cumbernauld this week.

It updates the plot to comment on Britain’s current political scene.

In the not to distant future, as Glasgow prepares for the coronation of Queen Margaret II, entrepreneurs prepare to make their money from this historic event.

None more so than strong man Jonathan Jeremiah of the “Mac Peachum Circus”.

Ring Master and yuppie, Mac The Knife, upsets his plans and steals Peachum’s future prosperity in the shape of his daughter Polly. The strong man must have his revenge and uses the corrupt state police to achieve this.

Cumbernauld Youth Theatre bring a high level of energy and commitment to this unusual interpretation of a classic play. The songs of Kurt Weill are performed by a company with little signing experience. They are coached and accompanied by well known Glasgow pianist Karen McIver.

The show opens tomorrow (Thursday) and runs until Saturday at Cumbernauld Theatre.

Cumbernauld Youth Theatre’s latest production was an unusual interpretation of Brecht’s “the Threepenny Opera”, performed at the Cumbernauld Theatre last week.

Using a cast of 15 to 21-year-olds, the play directed by Chris Smith told the tale of amoral Mac the Knife, bandit and womaniser.

To bring the play closer to home for Cumbernauld audiences, the group transported the action to Glasgow in the “not too distant future”. As the city prepares for the coronation of Queen Margaret II, entrepreneurs prepare to make money from the historic event.

One of these is strong man Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum, excellently played by Stephen Angellini, who lets loose his crack team of beggar on the streets to milk money from the rich.

Difficult themes of poverty, morality and infidelity were handled well by a uniformly strong cast.

Stephen Angellini handled hi scenes with depth and power, while Gerri Leonard, playing a particularly arch Mac the Knife, dominated his scenes the a sort of bored ruthlessness.

As Polly, Rhona Morrison made a convincing innocent, and worked well with the other principals. Allison Harran played Mrs Peachum as a screeching Glasgow wife. One problem this raised was that her diction made the words of the songs, a vital part of “The Threepenny Opera”, a little indistinct.

1 | 2 | Top