1952 / DON PASQUALE / Donizetti

DON PASQUALE – DONIZETTI

Presented on May 17m, 19, 23, 24 at the Gaiety Theatre Dublin as part of the Dublin Grand Opera Society’s Spring Season

Ronald Stear – Pasquale
Veronica Dunne – Norina
Ivan Cecchini – Ernesto
Bruce Dargaval – Malatesta
Barry O’Sullivan – Notary

Vilem Tausky – Conductor
Powell Lloyd – Producer

Don Pasquale (Ronald Stear, seated) observes as Norina (Veronica Dunne) and her retinue arrive at his house during “Don Pasquale” at the Gaiety Theatre Dublin, May 1952; prominent amongst the choristers are Monica Condron and Brendan Cavanagh on left and Sean Flanagan wearing the cook’s hat

In the ’52 spring season [Veronica Dunne] had sung Norina in Donizetti’s comic masterpiece “Don Pasquale” and was less fortunate with the choice of tenor. Ivan Cecchini, as Ernesto, sang in Italian and the rest of the cast in English; his acting was wooden and vocally he lacked the lyric beauty that the part requires. The rest of the cast fared much better, with Ronald Stear a ‘magnificent’ Pasquale and Bruce Dargaval excelling as the genial Malatesta. It was another successful evening for Veronica Dunne. ‘Her acting had all the playfulness and guile that the character of Norina demanded,’ noted the Evening Mail; while other reviews emphasised her flair for comedy and easy bel canto phrasing. Except for the performance by the tenor Ivan Cecchini, she has satisfying memories of the production, particularly Vilem Tausky’s pacing of the music which she thought inspired.

(Extracted from “Love and Music: The Glorious History of the Dublin Grand Opera Society” by Gus Smith, 1998)