UK Opera

All opera reviews from UK sources

La tragédie de Carmen was a captivating evening of entertaining music theatre at Buxton

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Bizet, La tragédie de Carmen (after Carmen by Bizet and Mérimée. Reimagined by Peter Brook using libretto by Jean-Claude Carrière and music score by Marius Constant): Soloists, Northern Chamber Orchestra / Iwan Davies (conductor). Buxton International Festival, Derbyshire, 9.7.2024. (MC)

Niamh O’Sullivan (Carmen) and Elgan Llŷr Thomas (Don José) © Genevieve Girling

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An uplifting, small-scale production of The Boatswain’s Mate at Buxton was a real treat

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Buxton International Festival 2024 [1] – Ethel Smyth, The Boatswain’s Mate: Soloists, Chorus and Instrumental Trio / Rebecca Warren (direction). Buxton International Festival, Pavilion Arts Centre, Derbyshire, 8.7.2024. (MC)

[l-r] Rebecca Warren (piano), Elizabeth Findon (Mrs Waters) and Theo Perry (Ned Travers) © Genevieve Girling

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A delightful performance of The Fairy Queen by the Armonico Consort and Players in Thaxted

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Thaxted Festival 2024 [3] – Purcell, The Fairy Queen, Z 629: Oz Clarke (narrator), Eloise Irving, Hannah Fraser Mackenzie, Laura Moretto (sopranos), William Towers (alto), Matthew Pochin (tenor), Robert Davies (bass), Armonico Consort & Baroque Players / Christopher Monks (harpsichord / director). Thaxted Parish Church, 6.7.2024. (CC)

Purcell’s The Fairy Queen at the Thaxted Festival 2024

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Edgar, Opera Holland Park’s recent Puccini excavation, is a revelation

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Puccini, Edgar (1905 version, semi-staged, orchestral reduction Toby Burke): Soloists, Children from Pimlico Musical Foundation and Tiffin School, Opera Holland Park Chorus, City of London Sinfonia / Naomi Woo (conductor). Opera Holland Park, London, 2.7.2024. (CC)

Gweneth Ann Rand as Tigrana and the OHP Chorus in OHP’s Edgar © Ali Wright

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