Clayton’s Vere is the devastating heart of vivid Billy Budd staging

Brutalist grey and half-skeleton, Michael Grandage’s HMS Indomitable dominates the stage, its gently curved deck creating a claustrophobic cage. Hard edges are softened by coils of rope, hammocks and Paule Constable’s painterly lighting, while spotless Napoleonic uniforms and grubby workwear give the crowd of male bodies a visceral, violent, erotic charge.

From the curve of Christopher Oram’s set those standing centre-stage read as if through a fish-eye lens or an officer’s telescope; in this floating world at war everyone is under scrutiny. Premiered at Glyndebourne in 2010 and now revived by Ian Rutherford, the production draws clear lines between Billy Budd’s angelic goodness and John Claggart’s malevolence, described by EM Forster as a “sexual discharge gone evil.” Budd moves lithe and gymnast-like across the stage while Claggart cowers and barks.

In one scene Claggart’s chokehold of the Novice reads as both bullying and an unmistakable, perverse embrace.

billy budd, michael grandage, hms indomitable, glyndebourne, ian rutherford, christopher oram, paule constable, napoleonic uniforms, brutalist set, john claggart