Life

Bravo for Bruno

Born in northern Ireland but based in Italy, baritone Bruno Caproni takes on the lead role in Verdi's Macbeth at the grand Opera House in Belfast this weekend. He talks to Anne Hailes

I t was a dark and stormy afternoon; three people sat in a church hall.

From above came the noise of thunder, off to the right the voice of a soprano reaching the heights in her sequence of scales. Seconds later the rich tones echo back, bouncing off a distant stone staircase. On the table is a bottle of blood, nearby a dagger. All the hallmarks of a drama about to take place. And so it was.

I was in the middle of Macbeth rehearsals at the Magdelane Church in Donegall Pass in Belfast. The role of Macbeth, the brave ambitious scottish general, brings baritone Bruno Caproni back to his birthplace.

He is a member of the famous Caproni family renowned for their ballroom in Bangor and the ice cream enjoyed by thousands on a day out to the seaside Co Down town. Although the story is set in scotland, in Oliver Mears's production the action could take place anywhere in the world where there is strife, conflict and evil trying to overcome good. This NI Opera version promises to bring exquisite drama to the stage of the Grand Opera House -- featuring the Ulster Orchestra and a cast also including Rachel Nicholls, Paul Carey Jones, Andrew Rees, John Molloy and AaronCawley. With a chorus of more than 40 and seven principals each with eight costume changes, there will be as much drama backstage as in front of the curtain.

Bruno, a Verdi specialist, loves this role. "It's probably the most demanding in the Verdi repertoire, there's no holding back, it's very intense. After every performance I come off with my head going 'boom boom'."

He sings the 'boom boom' and you get an idea of this man's rich voice. When he was a young man he sang in the chorus of the NI Opera trust and with Havelock Nelson's studio Opera Group and ended up Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester where he was granted a Verdi Rigoletto showcase.

"this started me off on the Verdi canon, he writes wonderfully for baritones and I've now sung 16 major Verdi roles. I'm impressed by the young members of the chorus, a super young bunch and many of them could well go on to be professionals. They are lucky to have an outlet like NI Opera to gain experience." After 27 years treading the boards, Bruno is a level-headed performer, no gimmicks or rabbits' feet for luck -- although he admits he won't wear the costumes department's socks. "I always wear my own -- comfort is vital," he laughs.

Only once did anything go wrong when the bed he was sharing with Lady Macbeth dramatically rolled off the stage and into the wings. "We just drifted away out of sight," he laughs again.

Bruno sings all over the world and is especially in demand for his Italian recitals with pianist Julian Evans. Today Bruno lives in the family home of Barga, a medieval town in tuscany, but every time he's in Northern Ireland he heads for Bangor and the local library, sifting through the Co Down spectator and piecing together the history of the ballroom and

the showbands who played there -- Oscar Rabin, Lou Preager, Joe Loss, Ted Heath and the variety shows with Joseph Locke and James Johnston. It was a wonderful training ground for a young singer.

Bruno recalls how his grandfather brought builders from Italy to build the dance hall, the sprung maple floor and the artistic plasterwork.

Enrico Caproni also brought the art of ice cream making and terrazzo flooring to Northern Ireland and now his grandson is bringing superb opera.

But it was time to end our chat. The thunder which was the chorus warming up in the room above came to an end, there was a distant call for Bruno and we wished each other goodbye until tomorrow night when this affable and talented man will assume the role of an ambitious general led astray by three witches and one scheming wife.

* Verdi's Macbeth comes to the Grand Opera House in Belfast tomorrow and Saturday at 7.15pm and on Sunday at 2pm. For tickets (£10 to £40), visit Goh.co.uk or call 028 9024 1919.

*BACK HOME: Bruno Caproni

PICTURE: Mark Marlow