Handel's Orlando, first performed in London in 1733, tells the story of a well-respected soldier who does not want to fight because he has been emotionally hurt by Angelica, who he loves. However, she has fallen in love with Medoro, a wounded soldier who is also loved by Dorinda, who is caring for him. Orlando is descending into madness and Zoroastro tries to intervene to get Orlando back to his profession as a soldier.

Director Harry Fehr, has formulated the concept of setting this production in a war-time private hospital where Orlando is battling with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Medoro is a physically injured patient, Dorinda is a nurse caring for them both, Zoroastro is a psychiatrist treating Orlando and Angelica is portrayed as a chic, forceful woman.

The curtain remained lowered during the overture, which was a positive move. The conductor, the youthful looking Andrew Griffiths who obviously relished every note, created pure joy with his enthusiasm and clear direction, musically resulting in style, elegance and forward motion – all essential in Handel's music.

The curtain rose to reveal Yannis Thavoris' magnificent 1940s hospital set design where Orlando, (Lawrence Zazzo) is undergoing electric shock treatment overseen by Zoroastro, (Daniel Grice) who launches into a vigorous aria displaying his wonderful bass voice with clean long vocal runs which are used to establish his character.

The first act predominantly comprises of a succession of da-capo arias; this format is so ingeniously used as the coloratura and cadenzas are all employed as part of the action rather than mere virtuosic display. Momentum was maintained by the clock-work precision of the revolving set and staging and some members of the WNO chorus in supporting roles, again moving with sharp attention to detail. I thought the use of back projection really worked well too and was informative to the context of the narrative.

Lawrence Zazzo gave an outstanding performance as Orlando, both vocally and dramatically bringing varied vocal colour into his voice which projected well. He was totally committed throughout and by using looks, movement and vocal dexterity he gave a convincing portrayal of Orlando's descent into madness. Robin Blaze used his soft pure beautiful tone to tenderly portray the contrasting sensitive character of Medoro. Fflur Wynn captured the crushed confused state of Dorinda with accomplished, perceptive singing, beautifully delivered with agility in the 'Nightingale' aria.

Rebeccca Evans was stunning as Angelica, calculating, elegant, yet still exposing some vulnerability. The rich warm tones in her voice conveyed throughout her whole vocal range, there was a special moment in her aria close to the end of act two where the orchestra paused and her voice hovered effortlessly.

To add a bit of extra excitement to the evening, the music stand lighting of the violin section failed just before a brisk paced aria was about to commence, after a brief look of horror the musicians splendidly persevered in the dark, relying on their muscle memories until a deft technician restored illumination.

This was indeed a memorable night at the New Theatre, thank you WNO!

I have a huge amount of respect for the Welsh National Opera. They are a company who push the boundaries of what can be achieved by a touring opera company and should be applauded for their ambition. It is all the more disappointing to encounter one of their productions which really falls short in a number of key areas.

Harry Fehr's decision to update the action from the time of Charlemagne to World War II constantly works against, rather than with, the libretto and this hampers the production from the very outset. Where Handel was imagining an exotic setting controlled by a manipulative magician, we are presented with a far more prosaic world of a mental hospital and a psychiatrist with unusual methods. Dramaturgically, it simply does not work. To my mind, it is a misguided attempt to take some glorious music and use that to tell a story far removed from the one originally intended by the composer.

Musically, the evening feels over long. Andrew Griffiths conducts a rather flat performance which does not relish the dramatic possibilities of some of Handel's most well-constructed sequences. At times, it feels that he indulges rather than driving forward the drama. The orchestra makes some ravishing noises but the balance between the strings and oboes occasionally felt off - with the woodwind being lost in the ample (yet beautiful) string sound. The continuo section played with enormous sensitivity throughout.

There are two standout performances from the cast of five. Fflur Wyn is delightful and constantly captivating as Dorinda - her Act 2 opening aria was some of the finest singing of the night. She is a star of the future. In the title role, Lawrence Zazzo is exemplary. He has an incredibly masculine countertenor sound which sets him apart from many of his contemporaries. His music is incredibly taxing and he tackles it with a very assured touch. I would be delighted to hear him sing this sort of repertoire over and over again.

Overall this was a disappointment. From poorly constructed surtitles to singing that seemed to forget that consonants can just be as important as vowels when it comes to conveying the meaning of the text, this is not a production that shows what WNO can achieve when they are at their best.

If it hadn't have been for Fflur Wyn and Lawrence Zazzo, it would have been completely forgettable. Thankfully they gave strong performances that saved the show.