Opera & Ballet

Collected opera and ballet reviews

Darkness and light confront each other in Simon McBurney’s brilliantly inventive Met Die Zauberflöte

by

United StatesUnited States The Met: Live in HD – Mozart, Die Zauberflöte: Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera House, New York / Nathalie Stutzmann (conductor). Broadcast Live in HD (directed by Gary Halvorson) from the Metropolitan Opera House to Cineworld Basildon, Essex, 3.6.2023. (JPr)

Erin Morley (Pamina) and Thomas Oliemans (Papageno) © Karen Almond / Met Opera

Read more

The strong cast brings the more consistent personality and character to Garsington’s pared down Mitridate

by

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Garsington Opera 2023 [2] – Mozart, Mitridate, re di Ponto: Soloists, The English Concert / Clemens Schuldt (conductor). Garsington Opera at Wormsley, 3.6.2023. (CR)

Iestyn Davies (Farnace) and Soraya Mafi (Ismene) © Julian Guidera

Read more

Excellent singers, conductor and orchestra makes Götterdämmerung Longborough’s best Wagner yet

by

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Longborough Festival Opera – Götterdämmerung: Soloists, Longborough Community Chorus, Festival Chorus and Opera Orchestra / Anthony Negus (conductor). Longborough Festival Opera, Moreton-in-Marsh, 31.5.2023. (JPr)

Final scene: Lee Bisset (Brünnhilde) © Matthew Williams-Ellis

Read more

Despite an ailing Rigoletto there is much to relish at Opera Holland Park

by

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Opera Holland Park 2023 [1] – Verdi, Rigoletto: Soloists, Opera Holland Park Chorus, City of London Sinfonia / Lee Reynolds (conductor). Opera Holland Park, London, 1.6.2023. (CC)

Hannah Pedley (Maddalena) and Alessandro Scotto di Luzio (Duke of Mantua) © Craig Fuller

Read more