Having dipped into ballet, film-scoring and musicals, the only surprise about last night’s Pet Shop Boys Prom was that it was their first. Still, on 2014’s first late-night Prom they made up for lost time with three premieres.
Overture to Performance was the recorded preamble to their 1991 Performance world tour but was never played live. In the hands of the BBC Concert Orchestra, this jumble of nine Pet Shop Boys tunes veered towards burlesque. Mountains remained unmoved.
More rewarding was Chrissie Hynde’s vocal take on four Neil Tenant/Chris Lowe songs, serenely arranged by Angelo Badalamenti of Twin Peaks fame. Early hesitancy evolved into a majestic Vocal and a subtle and supple duet with Tennant on Rent.
The real joy, though, was A Man from the Future, the story of Alan Turing, the Second World War codebreaker who was prosecuted for gross indecency, committed suicide shortly after being chemically castrated and was posthumously pardoned in 2013. Tennant and Lowe were joined by the BBC orchestra and the BBC Singers, but the real star, who bound the disparate elements together, was actress Juliet Stevenson, narrating with gravitas and impeccable timing.
The 45-minute extended song-suite had its clunky moments but it was joyously light on its musical feet, encompassing sublime Kraftwerkian wonder, the sheer power of orchestra and choir at full pelt.
The sheer scale required to perform it may mean A Man from the Future is consigned to history. Let’s hope not: it deserves better.
The BBC Proms run until September 13 (0845 401 504, bbc.co.uk/proms)
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