The 1738 premiere of George Frideric Handel’s Xerxes in London was a failure, falling into oblivion for almost 200 years. Today, it is a welcome part of the repertoire, yet has not been fully staged in Melbourne since 2009, when Victorian Opera presented the work at the newly opened Melbourne Recital Centre.
Opening Wednesday evening at the Beckett Theatre (Malthouse Theatre), students from the University of Melbourne’s Master of Music (Opera Performance), Bachelor of Music (Performance) and Bachelor of Fine Arts (Production) joined with the Conservatorium’s Early Music Studio – under the professional guidance of academic staff – to showcase Handel’s convoluted romantic drama, set to music of melting atmospheric beauty and lucency.
Energetic, elegant and entertaining, it’s another feather in the cap for grass roots opera in Melbourne, with a fine cast of young artists punching above their weight.
Based on some truths surrounding the Persian King Xerxes I in around 470 BC, when military might and territorial expansion are on the agenda, front and centre on Xerxes mind is the pursuit of Romilda. But she and Xerxes’ brother, Arsamene, are in love; her sister Atalanta is in love with Arsamene; and Xerxes’ jilted betrothed, Amastre, craftily disguises herself as a man to find a way back to the king.
Matching the heightened sense of romantic entanglement, the action moves quickly. Transposed from BC to the splendour of the Belle Époque, Head of Opera Jane Davidson infuses her direction with a delightful effervescence that cleverly leans into the opera’s innovative blend of seria and buffa – the very quality that puzzled audiences in Baroque England.
A golden age of art, science and advancing industrialisation, fuelled by new technologies, the Belle Époque frames the narrative ideally. Megan Black’s dashing, richly textured costumes are befitting the sumptuousness of the era.
Most impressively, it is elevated by Lochlan Maher’s beautiful and versatile set design, whose various riveted steel elements and sweeping curves evoke the grandeur of the era’s industrial advances – from the great exhibition halls, railway stations, conservatories and bridges to its crowning achievement, the Eiffel Tower. Under Hugo Iser-Smith’s mood-filled lighting design, the entire visual drama excels.
Among all the scenic variations, one particular scene perfectly nails Davidson’s Belle Époque concept; a ribbon-cutting ceremony takes place on a newly-constructed bridge (spanning the Hellespont to unite Asia and Europe in the original), while a chorus of onlookers sings of art and nature existing in harmony.
Sung in English to a neatly edited version drawing on Nicholas Hytner’s translation, a palpable sense of immediacy and wit floods through, while the students approach their roles with remarkable maturity and assurance.
The two leading male characters, Xerxes (written for soprano castrato) and his brother Arsamene (written for female contralto), are both performed as trouser roles. Brittney Northcott is a magnetic presence as Romilda’s persistent pursuer Xerxes, her glowing, ember-warm mezzo-soprano adding appealing suavity to an otherwise odious despot.
Stylishly portrayed, and working the comedy with gentle gesturing from the start, Northcott launches into the opera’s opening and widely recognised aria, Never was there a shade (Ombra mai fu) – in which Xerxes sings poetically of his love for a plane tree providing him shade – with polished technique and phrasing. Through to the jack-knife turn in the finale, when Xerxes accepts his own infidelities, Northcott maintains convincing characterisation and vivid vocal rendering.
Desperate in their attempts to be together but tested by interference, young lovers Arsamene and Romilda are in the excellent hands of Emma Mueller and Lily Flynn. Mueller galvanises every aspect of her admirable vocal abilities to convey Arsamene’s deeply felt conviction and protection he gives with an affectionate edge and warm, velvety mezzo-soprano.
Agile soprano Flynn is particularly striking, building intensity with compelling, expressive vocals and delivering a performance highlight with a powerfully engaging It is jealousy that I feel (È gelosia quella che sento) – Romilda’s Act II aria in which she becomes exasperated, suspecting Arsamene of being unfaithful.
Mezzo-soprano Mia Kousoumidis summons a tornado of emotion as the abandoned Amastre, making her vengeance profoundly clear in the repeated couplets of Amastre’s thrilling Act II meltdown.
Adorable comic flourishes accompany a sweet, pure soprano as Zoe Lancaster weaves the plot with craftiness as Romilda’s sister, Atalanta. Their father Ariodate, commander of Xerxes’ army, is pompously depicted by bass-baritone Zhuoyang (Sunny) Li in another strong vocal performance to his credit, while flamboyance and versatility are the key ingredients Leyland Jones brings to Arsamene’s servant Elviro.
While some of the recitative moments could be better smoothed out, Jones’ sonorous bass is a fine instrument, complemented by a comic falsetto that is a hoot in his disguise as old-woman flower seller.
Further depth is added by a trio of dancers who bring playfulness as maidens, and later doom as spirits, while every phrase of Handel’s glorious choral music is illuminated with excellence by a thoroughly immersive ensemble.
The only snag, and rather disappointingly, the orchestral landscape sometimes failed in its fusion of the individual instrumental elements, creating a raggedness that occasionally grated on the ear.
Certainly, after the interval, the second part came together more pleasingly, with Music Director Donald Nicolson – conducting from harpsichord and organ – keeping the tempi brisk and sculpting passages of divine beauty from his 11 fellow musicians performing on period instruments.
Once again, young performers and creatives are demonstrating not only their talents but that opera is a go-to art form. Xerxes makes a compelling case for its continuing relevance, proving that nearly three centuries on, Handel’s work can still sparkle in the right light.
Xerxes
Beckett Theatre – Malthouse Theatre, Sturt Street, Southbank (Melbourne)
Performance: Wednesday 2 September 2026
Season continues to 5 September 2026
Information: www.unimelb.edu.au
Images: Zhuoyang (Sunny) Li as Ariodates and Company of Xerxes – photo by Ben Fon | Mia Kousoumidis as Amastris and Brittney Northcott as Xerxes – photo by Ben Fon | Zoe Lancaster as Atalanta – photo by Ben Fon | Emma Mueller as Arsamenes – photo by Ben Fon | Leyland Jones as Elviro – photo by Ben Fon
Review: Paul Selar