Jim Pritchard

At Bayreuth, Valentin Schwarz has Siegfried playing unhappy families in vino veritas

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GermanyGermany Bayreuth Festival 2022 – Wagner, Siegfried: Soloists, Bayreuth Festival Orchestra / Cornelius Meister (conductor). Recorded (directed by Michael Beyer) at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus and available on STAGE+ until 14.11.2047. (JPr)

Andreas Schager (Siegfried), Igor Schwab (Grane) and Daniela Köhler (Brünnhilde) © Enrico Nawrath

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The Royal Ballet’s The Nutcracker still is a glittering showcase for a company at their very best in 2022

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Tchaikovsky, The Nutcracker: Dancers of The Royal Ballet, London Oratory Junior Choir, The Schola Cantorum of the London Oratory School (director: Charles Cole), Orchestra of the Royal Opera House / Barry Wordsworth (conductor). Broadcast (directed by Peter Jones) from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, to Cineworld Basildon, Essex, 8.12.2022. (JPr)

William Bracewell (Prince) and Fumi Kaneko (Sugar Plum Fairy) © Alistair Muir

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Valentin Schwarz’s Bayreuth Die Walküre focuses on soap opera-style family angst and drama

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GermanyGermany Bayreuth Festival 2022 – Wagner, Die Walküre: Soloists, Bayreuth Festival Orchestra / Cornelius Meister (conductor). Recorded (directed by Michael Beyer and Jule Geissler) at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus and available on STAGE+ until 14.11.2047. (JPr)

Tomasz Konieczny (Wotan), Georg Zeppenfeld (Hunding) and Christa Mayer (Fricka) © Enrico Nawrath

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On tour with A Christmas to Remember, dancers Aljaž and Janette prove a triple threat

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Various composers, Aljaž and Janette – A Christmas to Remember: Aljaž Škorjanec and Janette Manrara (co-creators and choreography) and Company (Janine Johnson, Adrian Hansel [featured singers], Robbie Kmetoni, Faye Huddleston [lead partners], Aimee Hipson, Alex Sturman, Kiera Brunton, Nick Stuart [ensemble]), Gareth Walker (director and choreographer), Matt Howes (music supervisor). Cliffs Pavilion, Southend-on-Sea, 3.12.2022. (JPr)

Janette Manrara and Aljaž Škorjanec © Fiona Whyte for The TCB Group

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A Trump-like Wotan and child trafficking dominate Valentin Schwarz’s new Bayreuth Rheingold

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GermanyGermany Bayreuth Festival 2022 – Wagner, Das Rheingold: Soloists, Bayreuth Festival Orchestra / Cornelius Meister (conductor). Recorded (directed by Michael Beyer) at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus and available on STAGE+ until 14.11.2047. (JPr)

Valentin Schwarz’s Das Rheingold © Enrico Nawath

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Tcherniakov’s Götterdämmerung in Berlin wipes the slate clean, though any message for us is unclear

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GermanyGermany Wagner, Götterdämmerung: Soloists, Staatsopernchor, Staatskapelle Berlin / Christian Thielemann (conductor). Filmed (directed by Andy Sommer) on 9.11.2022 at Staatsoper Unter den Linden but available until 17.2.2023 on ARTE Concert. (JPr)

Anja Kampe (Brünnhilde), Andreas Schager (Siegfried) and Michael Volle (Wotan) © Monika Rittershaus

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