This is a complex score, often with multiple characters following different musical threads simultaneously, and Nagano seemed completely unfazed by the most elaborate of the polyrhythmic complexity, no doubt increased by the use of a newly created adaptation for larger orchestra. Nagano’s affinity for Bernstein is evident. The production has a direct link to Bernstein in the shape of conductor Kent Nagano, who studied with Bernstein and often discussed A Quiet Place with him. Warlikowski gets top class acting performances from his cast, while designer Małgorzata Szczęśniak gives us costumes which neatly place us in the American context and sets that move smoothly in and out to reveal different rooms, often splitting the stage horizontally to show us more than one room at the same time. Finally, in the peace and calm of Dinah’s overgrown garden, there is a family struggle, demanded by Dinah’s will, for reconciliation and redemption. Next, as the lesser characters melt away, we see a series of reminiscences where we learn about their inner battles there’s no dream that can sour as nastily as the American Dream of a perfect family and that souring process is shown in all its horror. Warlikowski and Polak end this with another visual shock: the image that you never see of the inside of a crematorium furnace as the coffin is consumed. First is the funeral, where the family assemble with a scattering of different mourners to paint a picture of the dysfunctional family, gradually, with many brushstrokes.
Presented here as a one-act piece (there are various other incarnations), A Quiet Place proceeds in three phases.
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