KATE GUELKE

The Enchantress (Director) 

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” You think me fickle then?”
“I think you – a man.”

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A corrupt state, a spoiled prince, a woman of the stage:

Things are about to change in aristocratic Europe, when a womanising crown prince catches the eye of celebrated singer Vivien, whose independence threatens to upset the stately decorum. Written by Irish-American composer Victor Herbert and two of his regular collaborators at a time when the suffrage movement was gaining strength in North America, this operetta has not lost its bite when commenting on inherited power and female ambition, while revelling in the nostalgia of old-world charm.

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In December 2019, NI Opera's Studio realised this production at Accidental Theatre and the Black Box Belfast as well as Culturlann in Derry~Londonderry.

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"The lyrics are easy to follow, the connecting dialogue is full of mirth, and at one point Macarena dance moves add to the sense of farce. The cast step off the sparse black stage and walk amongst the audience who are seated around tables. Props fly, bubbles are blown, tea is well and truly spilt, and the plot zig zags with increasing speedy twists and turns towards its will-they-won’t-they conclusion." - Alan Meban
 

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