Opera & Ballet

Collected opera and ballet reviews

Much to celebrate in the ‘timeless’ revival of Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci in Hamburg

by

GermanyGermany Mascagni, Cavalleria rusticana, Leoncavallo, Pagliacci: Soloists, Chorus, Extra Chorus, Alsterspatzen (children and youth chorus) of Hamburg State Opera, Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Daniele Callegari (conductor). Hamburg State Opera, 29.3.2024. (DMD)

Hamburg State Opera’s Cavalleria rusticana © Hans Jörg Michel

Read more

The superb Asmik Grigorian is simply Mimì in a kimono in Covent Garden’s Madama Butterfly

by

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Puccini, Madama Butterfly: Soloists, Royal Opera Chorus, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House / Kevin John Edusei (conductor). Filmed (directed by Bridget Caldwell) on 26.3.2024 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and shown at Everyman Cinema, Chelmsford, Essex, 1.4.2024. (JPr)

[l-r] Hongni Wu (Suzuki), Josef Jeongmeen Ahn (Yamadori), Ya-Chung Huang (Goro), Asmik Grigorian (Cio-Cio-San) and Joshua Guerrero (Pinkerton) © Marc Brenner

Read more

Thielemann and Die Frau ohne Schatten make a strong impression in Dresden

by

GermanyGermany R. Strauss, Die Frau ohne Schatten: Soloists, Children’s Chorus (director: Claudia Sebastian-Bertsch) and Chorus of the Semperoper Dresden, Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden / Christian Thielemann (conductor). Semperoper, Dresden, 27.3.2024. (MB)

Richard Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten © Semperoper Dresden/Ludwig Olah

Read more

A talented cast combined to make Opera North’s Così fan tutte an eminently enjoyable production

by

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Mozart, Così fan tutte: Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra of Opera North / Clemens Schuldt (conductor). Lyric Theatre, The Lowry, The Quays, Salford, 21.3.2024. (MC)

Henry Neill (Guglielmo), Quirijn de Lang (Don Alfonso) and Anthony Gregory (Ferrando) © James Glossop

Read more