UK Opera

All opera reviews from UK sources

Longborough delivers a magical Ring to conclude five years of diligent planning

by

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Longborough Festival Opera 2024 [1] – Wagner, Der Ring des Nibelungen: Soloists, Longborough Community Chorus, Longborough Festival Orchestra / Anthony Negus (conductor), Longborough, Cotswolds, 4, 5. 7 & 9.7.2024. (CP)

Paul Carey Jones (The Wanderer) and Bradley Daley (Siegfried) in Siegfried © Matthew Williams-Ellis

Read more

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

by

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

Read more

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

by

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

Read more

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

by

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

Read more

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

by

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

Read more