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Phoney Coney Così London
English National Opera
02/06/2026 - & February 10, 11*, 14, 17, 19, 21, 2026
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588
Madeline Boreham*/Lucy Crowe (Fiordiligi), Taylor Raven (Dorabella), Joshua Blue (Ferrando), Darwin Prakash (Guglielmo), Andrew Foster-Williams (Don Alfonso), Ailish Tynan (Despina)
ENO Chorus, Matthew Quinn (chorus director), ENO Orchestra, Dinis Sousa (conductor)
Phelim McDermott (director), Paule Constable (lighting designer), Gary James (revival lighting designer), Tom Pyne (set designer), Laura Hopkins (costume designer), Iskandar R. Sharazuddin (revival skills and movement director)
(© James Glossop)
Phelim McDermott’s production of Così fan tutte, shared with the Met, is a fun show that gets off to a joyous start. A circus box is wheeled in front of the gold lame curtain and a succession of fairground characters emerge one by one: a sword swallower, strong man, drag queen, contortionist, the tallest and shortest people imaginable. We are in Coney Island in the 1950s, where the two young couples are on holiday – sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella, and friends Ferrando and Guglielmo, who are dating them. Despina is a chambermaid, but who Don Alfonso is remains unclear.
The production is complex and keeps the performers on the move pretty much all of the time and there are few moments where the eye can rest. The sets swivel with speed so that one moment you are outside the sisters’ chalet, then in their room, then suddenly in the main fairground where the couples take a Tea Cup funfair ride – Fiordiligi even floats skywards in a Montgolfier hot air balloon at one point. It really is a blast and the audience palpably loved it; there were many moments of laughter. The fairground characters populate almost every scene – not just performing but watching, eavesdropping, getting involved and helping out with the action. It is frenetic and makes for a great West End night out. The lighting is excellent, the costumes, focussing on shades of magenta, teal, purple, gold and pink – are vibrant, and funnily enough bang on trend for A/W2025‑26.
So it’s opera buffa all the way and that’s the good news. The not‑so‑good news is that the production barely scratches the surface of Mozart and Da Ponte’s complex work. We just sit and laugh at the sisters being duped and emotionally abused, and it all turns out right in the end – so presumably that’s OK then. What about the dark undercurrents that stream through the opera? Everyone tricks or is tricked, everyone deceives, even if just to themselves, Fiordiligi being a prime example until she crumbles in Act II. What is Don Alfonso’s motivation – is he purely a misogynist, or has something happened to him that’s made him cynical beyond belief? – and why does Despina capitulate to his plot so easily. In fact Don Alfonso doesn’t extend his wager out of the blue but in response to the young men mocking his theory that women are imperfect and fickle. By the end, the four young people’s lives are ruined. Trust is broken and relationships soured, the lovers pushed to their very limits. Happiness and sadness co‑exist throughout, much as do truth and lies. It is easy to apply contemporary values to the eighteenth century original, but these well‑bred young women know they need to marry to maintain social status and that fidelity is an imperative part of that bargain. None of this was apparent in ENO’s production, nothing acknowledged, let alone explored.
The problem was exacerbated by the lack of focus on the individual characters. Only Fiordiligi’s balloon ascent for ‘Per pietà’ gave her a place for self‑reflection. The fairground crew popped up all the time. For example, both Ferrando’s rapturous musings in ‘Un aura amorosa’ and distressed outburst at ‘Tradito, schernito’ were upstaged by extras gambolling around him. It was easy to lose the emotions in the mayhem.
A very good cast was led by Dinis Sousa in the pit. This was a balanced and well‑judged reading. Phrasing was clear, tempi natural, and orchestral detail crisp, with particularly impressive contributions from woodwind and brass when required. I had noticed that the same cast was due to perform the opera two days in a row, which seemed quite a tall order. At this, the second of those nights, Lucy Crowe cancelled her Fiordiligi and young soprano Madeline Boreham stepped in. She displayed great aplomb from her opening lines and there was no sign of hesitation at any time, so I suspect was well‑rehearsed, just in case. Boreham caught my attention recently at ENO as Sister Rose in Heggie’s Dead Man Walking. Her soprano is clear with a gleaming top and a surprisingly robust lower register. She has the coloratura and also the length of line that Mozart demands and, as in the Heggie, her diction is incredibly clear even when in full vocal flood. She is a good actor, well, as far as this production allows. I will follow her with great interest – I know I am getting ahead of myself but I can hear a true Jugendlich-dramatischer Sopran (Young dramatic soprano) in the making. For now, Fiordiligi fits her very well indeed. She is impressive.
Taylor Raven has a plush mezzo, well‑suited to Dorabella; not too heavy and with a pleasing bloom of youth. However, her vocal production seems to occlude her diction and at times I resorted to the surtitles. She, like Boreham, worked very well within the production, as did Ailish Tynan’s Despina, who had a good go at upstaging everyone with her sparky personality and Irish accent, charming the audience at every turn. Her soprano is lithe, her words incredibly clear, and she threw in a couple of surprise flourishes to the top of her range just because she could – amusing and impressive.
Joshua Blue’s Ferrando and Darwin Prakash’s Guglielmo were also excellent. Blue’s tenor is quite sizeable for the role but he sings with grace and sensitivity. Prakash made more or Guglielmo than many manage, a strong personality conveyed through a fine baritone. Andrew Foster-Williams made Don Alfonso almost likeable, and you could take dictation from his singing.
Many moons ago I took a friend to Così, her first opera, and in the interval she turned to me and asked ‘is all Mozart this silly?’ I argued not, but I don’t think McDermott’s production really helps my case, great fun though it is.
Francis Muzzu
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