The world premiere of the orchestral version of Laura Karpman's opera Balls took place at the Royal Festival Hall, London, retelling the famous 1973 'Battle of the Sexes' tennis match between Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King. The work, described by Karpman as always having been an opera, blends video clips, near-verbatim TV commentary, and a Hollywood-ready score.
Tenor Nicky Spence played Riggs as a comic ringleader, prancing and squealing through falsetto passages, while Nikola Printz portrayed King with powerful, intense vocal and dramatic presence. Lotte Betts-Dean was smoky-voiced as King's secretary and lover. The Philharmonia, conducted by Marin Alsop, alternated between filmic lushness and clapping along to spoken declamation.
Karpman's score transforms the shock of 1970s sexism into all-singing, all-dancing kitsch, with moments of hope sounding like Copland and archive footage of suffragettes accompanied by Philip Glass-style minimalism. The opera is not subtle, but subtlety is not the point; it excels at pace and entertainment, with King herself making a video cameo.
The programme also included Walton's Façade before the interval, a 'fun'-forward work demanding spectacular virtuosity, delivered with aplomb by Printz, Spence, and Betts-Dean, showcasing the Philharmonia musicians at their best.
