Jim Pritchard

Lise Davidsen is delightfully diva-ish in Sven-Eric Bechtolf’s ironic Vienna Ariadne auf Naxos

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AustriaAustria Richard Strauss, Ariadne auf Naxos: Soloists, Orchestra of Vienna State Opera / Cornelius Meister (conductor). Broadcast live (directed by Jasmina Eleta) from the Vienna State Opera, 28.1.2025. (JPr)

Ariadne (Lise Davidsen) and the Nymphs © Wiener Staatsoper/Michael Pöhn

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Carrie Hope Fletcher stars in Calamity Jane, an old-fashioned but still whip-cracking musical

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Calamity Jane (adapted for the stage by Charles K Freeman from a screenplay by James O’Hanlon): Cliffs Pavilion, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, 28.1.2025. (JPr)

Carrie Hope Fletcher (centre, Calamity Jane) and Richard Lock (far right, Rattlesnake) © Mark Senior

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Piotr Beczała redeems himself with his stylish Radamès in Michael Mayer’s deeply traditional Met Aida

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United StatesUnited States Verdi, Aida: Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera, New York / Yannick Nézet-Séguin (conductor). Broadcast live from the Metropolitan Opera, New York, to Cineworld Basildon, Essex, 25.1.2025. (JPr)

Michael Mayer’s production of Aida (Act I) © Ken Howard/Met Opera

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(P)review of the filmed version of Donmar Warehouse’s Macbeth coming to a cinema near you soon

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom William Shakespeare’s Macbeth: Filmed live (directed by Tim Van Someren) at London’s Donmar Warehouse in 2023 and released in cinemas across the UK, US, Australia and selected international territories from 5th February 2025. (JPr)

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Michieletto’s absinthe-fuelled Tales of Hoffmann for The Royal Opera gets a delightful musical performance

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Offenbach, The Tales of Hoffmann (Les contes d’Hoffmann): Soloists, Royal Opera Chorus, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House / Antonello Manacorda (conductor). Filmed (directed by Rhodri Huw) at the Royal Ballet and Opera in November 2024 and shown at the Everyman Cinema, Chelmsford, Essex, 15.1.2025. (JPr)

Julie Boulianne (rear, Nicklausse) and Juan Diego Flórez (Hoffmann) © Camilla Greenwell

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Long Live Puccini! La Scala overcomes adversity to perform 100 years to the day after he died

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ItalyItaly La Scala per Puccini: Jonas Kaufmann, Luciano Ganci (tenors), Anna Netrebko, Mariangela Sicilia (soprano), James Vaughan (piano). Filmed (directed by Stefania Grimaldi) at La Scala, Milan, 29.11.2024 and available on ARTE Concert until 28.3.2025. (JPr)

[l-r] James Vaughan, Jonas Kaufmann, Mariangela Sicilia, Luciano Ganci, and Anna Netrebko

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McCrystal’s too merry Glyndebourne Merry Widow lacks the depth it deserves despite a fine ensemble

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow: Soloists, The Glyndebourne Chorus, London Philharmonic Orchestra / John Wilson (conductor). Filmed (directed by Rhodri Huw) at the Glyndebourne Opera House and broadcast on BBC Four on 25.12.2024 and available on iPlayer. (JPr)

The entrance of Hanna Glawari (Danielle de Niese) in The Merry Widow Act I © Tristram Kenton

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Sky Arts shows the constructive chaos behind English National Ballet’s work-in-progress new Nutcracker

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Backstage with English National Ballet (Sky Arts, series directed by Zoë Dobson) & English National Ballet’s Nutcracker (directed for TV by Peter Jones): English National Ballet, English National Ballet Philharmonic / Maria Seletskaja (conductor). Filmed at the London Coliseum and first broadcast on Sky Arts on 23.12.2024. (JPr)

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