Opera & Ballet

Collected opera and ballet reviews

Hugo Marchand leads a stellar troupe of dancers from Paris Opera Ballet in Los Angeles

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United StatesUnited States ‘BalletNOW, Superstars of Paris’: Dancers of Paris Opera Ballet, Elena Bonnay (piano), Julie Sévilla-Fraysse (cello). Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, 1.8.2026. (JRo)

Hugo Marchand in Béjart’s Bolero (not in the current program) © Julien Benhamou

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OHP’s Die Fledermaus: disappointing production, though there is pleasure in the singing

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Opera Holland Park 2026 – Johann Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus: Soloists, Chorus of Opera Holland Park, City of London Sinfonia / George Jackson (conductor). Opera Holland Park, London, 29.7.2026. (KMcD)

Matthew Siveter (Frank) and Robert Burt (Frosch) © Craig Fuller

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This Fliegende Holländer revival proves quite a tonic after the anti-human beginning to the ‘AI’-Ring

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GermanyGermany Bayreuth Festival 2026 [4] – Wagner, Der fliegende Holländer: Soloists, Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra / Oksana Lyniv (conductor). Bayreuth Festspielhaus, 29.7.2026. (MB)

Benjamin Bruns (Erik) and Elisabeth Teige (Senta) © BF/Enrico Nawrath

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Rienzi marches up Bayreuth’s Green Hill: political corruption and a hidden family secret blights lives

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GermanyGermany Bayreuth Festival 2026 [3] – Wagner, Rienzi: Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra od the Bayreuth Festival / Nathalie Stutzmann (conductor). Livestreamed on STAGE+ (directed by Michael Beyer) from the Bayreuth Fespielehaus, 26.7.2026. (JPr)

Rienzi first scene © BF/Enrico Nawrath

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Opera Holland Park’s Un ballo in maschera revival: what a memorable evening this was

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Opera Holland Park 2026 – Verdi (arr. Burke), Un ballo in maschera: Soloists, Opera Holland Park Chorus, City of London Sinfonia / Michael Papadopoulos (conductor). Opera Holland Park, London, 25.8.2026. (CC)

Dame Rosalind Plowright (Madame Arvidson) © Craig Fuller

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