Susanna – The Lowry

Director Olivia Fuchs and Choreographer Marcus Jarrell Willis combine perfectly with this fourth major collaboration between Opera North and Phoenix Dance Theatre delivering an all-too prescient take on Handel’s celebrated Biblical operetta whose themes of chastity, integrity, and corruption are explored in terms of power, gender, and judgement.

Susanna (Anna Dennis) and Joacim (James Hall) celebrate their love for one another while her father, Chelsias (Matthew Brook), shares in their happiness, before Joacim is called away on business leaving Susanna with a sense of foreboding.

Two elder statesmen (Colin Judson; Karl Huml) confess their lust for Susanna to each other, and when she seeks respite from the heat of the day by taking a bath in her garden, they first spy on her then, when her attendant (Amy Freston) departs, assault her. But when she refuses their attempts to force her to yield to them, they publicly accuse her of adultery with an unmarried man.

As society swallows their lies and public opinion turns against her, she holds fast to her truth before being condemned to death. But then a youth named Daniel (Claire Lees) steps forward protesting her innocence and accusing the people of being too ready to accept allegations without evidence and demands of the Judge (Dean Robinson) to be allowed to question the two Elders separately, but will it be enough to exonerate Susanna?

Zahra Mansouri’s set design is perfectly simple as it fuses nature with the manmade and provides multiple spaces for this compelling drama to unfold with contemporary costume reinforcing that it is a tale very much of the here and now, all suitably augmented by Jake Witshire’s lighting design.

The dancers (Dorna Ashory; Teige Bisnought; Aaron Chaplin; Phikolwethu Luke; Graciela Mariqueo-Smith; Hannah McGlashon; Yasmina Patel; Tony Polo; Dylan Springer) excel with their animation of the characters displaying all the skills of physical theatre as they add a further choreographed layer to the music, resulting in a perfectly balanced and delightful vocal and visual feast.

I often talk about on-stage chemistry and here we similarly benefit from the strong relationship between two complimentary companies which  with the support of BSL Consultant Adam Bassett, is further embellished by a BSL Performer (Tianah Hodding) who, integral to the action, cleverly adds another dimension and viewpoint, as we asked to consider the voices we perhaps too easily listen to in contrast to the views of those who may be voiceless in many different ways.

Handel more or less invented oratorio which, more redolent of a concert performance than a staging, does contain many powerful choral moments which are superbly enacted here by the Chorus of Opera North, representing the people, serving up emotionally powerful performances with some wonderfully choreographed routines that serve to demonstrate the rich array and depth of talent that the company has to draw upon. With some of Handel’s most memorable melodic music to work with, Conductor Johanna Soller delightfully leads the orchestra though an uplifting rendition which navigates the darkness to arrive at a crescendo of hope for us all to hang on to.

There are strong vocal performances from the singers with Judson and Huml adding a particular edge as suited briefcase-carrying executives comfortable in their exploitation and willingness to bend the truth, whilst Lees is suitably impassioned as an obvious outsider bravely holding them to account.

Hall brings a sincerity to his performance with a charismatic vocal underlining his belief in his wife and demonstrating that not all men are bastards, whilst Dennis is simply outstanding with a moving performance that holds our attention throughout as we are confronted by the conundrum of how to prove your innocence amidst a web of trumped up lies…

Reviewer: Mark Davoren

Reviewed: 14^th November 2025

North West End UK Rating: