Switzerland Bizet, Carmen: Soloists, Chorus, Childrens’ choir, SoprAlti of Opera and Extras’ Association of Zurich Opera, Philharmonia Zurich / Gianandrea Noseda (conductor). Zurich Opera, 7.4.2024. (MF)
Zurich Opera sets their new Carmen in Paris
Opera & Ballet
Collected opera and ballet reviews
A consistently ominous atmosphere is wonderfully sustained in Vienna State Opera’s Simon Boccanegra
Austria Verdi, Simon Boccanegra: Soloists, Vienna State Opera Chorus and Orchestra / Marco Armiliato (conductor). Vienna State Opera, Vienna, 6.4.2024. (CR)
A new scenario for Salieri’s Kublai Khan offers slapstick fun and spectacle in Vienna
Austria Salieri, Kublai Khan: Soloists, Arnold Schoenberg Choir, Les Talens Lyriques / Christophe Rousset (conductor). MuseumsQuartier, Halle E, Vienna, 5.4.2024. (CR)
A joyous Le nozze di Figaro in Lübeck
Germany Mozart, Le nozze di Figaro: Soloists, Chorus and Extras of Theater Lübeck, Takahiro Nagasaki (fortepiano), Philharmonic Orchestra of Hansestadt Lübeck / Stefan Vladar (conductor). Theater Lübeck, 1.4.2024. (DM-D)
Lively casts and timely reflections mark the premiere of this sports opera double bill in San Francisco
United States ‘Birds & Balls’: Soloists, Orchestra of Opera Parallèle / Nicole Paiement (conductor). SFJAZZ Miner Auditorium, San Francisco, 5.4.2024. (HS)
Akhmetshina dominates, but in Michieletto’s new Carmen his ‘clever’ aspects may jar on repetition
United Kingdom Bizet, Carmen: Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House / Antonello Manacorda (conductor). Royal Opera House, London, 5.4.2024. (CC)
The ageless Gregory Kunde leads an outstanding Turandot in Hamburg
Germany Puccini, Turandot: Soloists, Chorus, Extra and Children’s chorus of Hamburg State Opera, Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg / Daniele Callegari (conductor). Hamburg State Opera, 31.3.2024. (DM-D)
In Paris: Nureyev’s Don Quixote is a true celebration of dance without the slightest false step
France Rudolf Nureyev’s Don Quixote: Paris Opera Ballet, Orchestra of the Paris National Opera / Gavriel Heine (conductor). Transmitted live (directed by François Roussillon) from the Opéra Bastille, Paris, 2.4.2024. (JPr)
