REVIEW: Messa Da Requiem - Queensland Ballet

Messa Da Requiem – Queensland Ballet

Glasshouse Theatre, QPAC

With Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Canticum Chamber Choir, Brisbane Chorale, and Opera Queensland

Choreographer: Christian Spuck

Music: Giuseppe Verdi

Conductor: Simon Hewett

Set Designer: Christian Schmidt

Costume Designers: Emma Ryott, Christopher Parker

Lighting Designers: Martin Gebhardt, Elfried Roller

Chorus Director: Emily Cox

Dramaturg: Claus Spahn

Featured Singers: Naomi Johns (Soprano), Cassandra Seidemann (Mezzo-Soprano), Kyle Stegall (Tenor), Jeremy Kleeman (Bass-Baritone)

Watch out, Timothée Chalamet, because we’ve got both ballet and opera going on at QPAC. With more than 140 performers packed onto the stage and an orchestra ready to shake the walls, Messa Da Requiem wastes no time reminding you just how powerful live performance can be.

Written back in 1874, Verdi’s Requiem transforms this traditional Catholic funeral mass into something far more theatrical. This is not your traditional narrative ballet. There’s no neat storyline to follow or main character to latch onto. Instead, choreographer Christian Spuck tackles big, overwhelming, sometimes uncomfortable truths. And he does it by letting the music lead, trusting Verdi’s monumental score to carry us through the experience.

One of the coolest elements of this production is how blurred the lines are between different art disciplines. The choir doesn't just stand there like musical statues; they move, shape the space, and become part of the choreography. The 110 choristers move in waves, ripple through canon patterns, and shift across levels to constantly reshape the enclosed stage. Without any theatre wings, performers appear and disappear through the back corners, adding a sense of mystery, like figures emerging from memory and slipping away again. Trumpeters play from above, surrounding the audience. There’s no clear separation between pit and stage, singer and dancer, sound and movement. Everything feeds into everything else.

Right from the start of Requiem et Kyrie, you’re hit with slow, intentional movements and striking stage visuals. Then, BOOM… Dies Irae (Day of Wrath) hits. If you haven’t heard this piece, you’ve got to give it a listen. Preferably loudly. It’s the most recognisable section of the work and easily the most relentless. It absolutely erupts in the new Glasshouse Theatre. The crashing drums and blazing brass bring out the terror of Judgement Day, with a nonstop urgency. The Queensland Symphony Orchestra delivers it with such force it almost feels seismic. The choir’s voices are unified and urgent, while dancers covered in ash contort and pulse through the chaos like an bug being tortured under a magnifying glass. There's a moment where the whole group surges across the stage in a frenzy like ants, and it's somehow both completely wild but incredibly precise.

The visuals kept surprising me too. The stage is surrounded by these towering grey walls that turn out to be blackboards, and later get covered in chalk scribbles that looked like signatures from where I was sitting. Some tables and chairs are constantly shifted and reworked to create new levels and areas. A movable light box creates stunning silhouette shadows of the dancers, especially in a pas de deux where lift after lift sends clouds of ash drifting into the air. There’s even a moment where dancers scale the wall like they’ve suddenly become gravity-defying creatures (very Spider-Man).

The choreography itself is a rich blend of classical ballet and contemporary movement. There are some delicate and lyrical pointe work, contrasted with almost primal floor work. The dancers crawl, roll, and ripple through the space like a swarm of insects. Then, just as quickly, everything goes still. There are also some truly beautiful smaller moments woven throughout. The pas de trois is fluid and sculptural, while a later pas de deux paired with the Agnus Dei features soft, interconnected movement and genuine tenderness. A section featuring a dozen partnered couples moving in sync was particularly striking. During the tenor solo, stillness is used to great effect, with dancers (including the men) appearing in tulle gowns, bare backs turned away from us, moving in hypnotic unison.

Vocally, the work is just as impressive. Cassandra Seidemann’s mezzo is rich and velvety, with a grounded warmth that carries beautifully, while Kyle Stegall’s tenor rings out with clarity and precision, slicing cleanly through the texture. Jeremy Kleeman’s bass-baritone provides a deep, resonant foundation that anchors the sound. And then there’s Naomi Johns, whose soprano soars effortlessly above the 110 voices of the choir and cuts through the orchestral swell… honestly unfair how easy she makes it sound.

The Sanctus gives the choirs a chance to really shine, and it’s thrilling to hear that many voices working together with such clarity and power. The a-cappella quartet section is another standout for its restraint… although, unfortunately, it was interrupted by an audience phone ringing not once, not twice, but four times! A gentle reminder that live theatre etiquette is still very much a thing (we beg of you).

What I appreciated most about this production is how immersive it feels. Not in a gimmicky, interactive way, but in the sense that you’re completely surrounded by it. The sound, the movement, the sheer scale of bodies on stage, it all pulls you in. There are moments of beauty, moments of intensity, and moments that are deliberately unresolved. This isn’t a light, easy watch. It gets slow in places, highly introspective, and is unapologetically dramatic. But if you enjoy opera, choral and classical music, ballet, contemporary dance, or simply witnessing what a huge group of artists can create together, there is so much to admire here.

It’s one of those experiences I'm very glad I didn’t miss, even if I wouldn't hurry back right away. Still, I'm pumped to see what Queensland Ballet and Opera Queensland have in store this season, and I might even check out a performance by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Brisbane Chorale, or Canticum Chamber Choir while I'm at it.