Review: LOYOLA, Grimeborn Festival, Arcola Theatre
Beautifully sung South American opera flawed a little by its overpowering religious messaging.
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Review: TROUBLE IN TAHITI, Grimeborn Festival, Arcola Theatre
Boutique opera now 72 years old but could have been written yesterday in terms of its music, its themes and its relevance, performed with verve and confidence
Review: RUDDIGORE, Opera Holland Park
Super show, a little slow at first, but blossoming into an escapist entertainment that can be enjoyed as much in the 2020s as it was in the 1880s
Review: In Saint-Saens' HENRI VIII, the King Has the Title but the Queens Are in Charge at Bard Festival
Donizetti’s so-called “Tudor Trilogy”--ANNA BOLENA, MARIA STUARDA and ROBERTO DEVEREUX (aka, “the one about Elizabeth I”)--suddenly has some competition on British history in opera: Camille Saint-Saens' HENRI VIII.
Review: DON PASQUALE at Union Avenue Opera
Scott Schoonover and his Union Avenue Opera have a long history (now twenty-nine years) of gathering remarkable operatic voices.
Review: NO FOR AN ANSWER, Grimeborn, Arcola Theatre
A strong score, neat production by Mehmet Ergen and an excellent cast make it worth a watch, even if it has several plot-related issues
Review: ITCH, Opera Holland Park
Jonathan Dove's music underpins and enhances the tale of a teen suddenly thrust into a world of corporate power and environmental exploitation
Review: Crutchfield's Teatro Nuovo Turns Fairy Godmother as CRISPINO Returns to New York
The famed playwright and wit George S.
Review: PROM 11: HORRIBLE HISTORIES - 'ORRIBLE OPERA, Royal Albert Hall
Prom 11: Horrible Histories ‘Orrible Opera is a delightful show that will amuse audiences of all ages while making opera more approachable.
Review: Splendid Donizetti Rarity POLIUTO Showed Its Great Bones via Crutchfield's Teatro Nuovo
Usually, when long-neglected works somehow find their way to the forefront, we find there’s a pretty good reason for the lack of interest.
Review: THE TURN OF THE SCREW at Union Avenue Opera
“The Turn of the Screw,” a deft psychological exploration of the dimensions of horror and the human mind.
Review: CINDERELLA (CENDRILLON) at Artscape Opera House Is a Magical Blend of Opera, Ballet and Dialogue
Everyone has been acquainted with the story of CINDERELLA in some way, shape or form.
Review: WOMAN AT POINT ZERO, Royal Opera House
Unique production defies easy categorisation, but thrills and appals to live long in the memory
Review: EVEREST, Barbican Theatre
An atmospheric story of a group of trapped explorers at the mercy of mother nature, the UK premiere of Joby Talbot’s Everest has a chillingly eerie resonance.
Review: WERTHER, Royal Opera House
A lacklustre central performance shifts the focus towards Charlotte's tragedy instead of Werther's.
Review: Madrid's Teatro Real Brings Out the Charms of Rossini's TURCO IN ITALIA with Oropesa
As I sat down to write about the delightful recent performance I heard of Rossini’s IL TURCO IN ITALIA at Madrid’s Teatro Real, with soprano Lisette Ororpesa in a charming new production by Laurence Pelly, I went to Spotify to see what kind of recordings were around.
Review: Madrid's Teatro Real Brings Out the Charms and Laughs of Rossini's TURCO IN ITALIA
As I sat down to write about the delightful recent performance I heard of Rossini’s IL TURCO IN ITALIA at Madrid’s Teatro Real, with soprano Lisette Ororpesa in a charming new production by Laurence Pelly, I went to Spotify to see what kind of recordings were around.
Review: SUSANNAH at Opera Theatre Of Saint Louis
It is a brilliant production of the second-most produced American opera.
Review: HANSEL AND GRETEL, Opera Holland Park
As a first taster to opera, Opera Holland Park's Hansel and Gretel isn't a bad place to start.
Review: COSI FAN TUTTE at Opera Theatre Of Saint Louis
Sublime voices overcome a troubled concept.
Review: IL TROVATORE, Royal Opera House
Adele Thomas' new production is a rollicking clash of carnivalesque weirdness and heartfelt desire.
Review: THE FLYING DUTCHMAN at Metropolitan Opera
Thomas Guggeis, the young German conductor making his Met debut, is Kapellmeister at the Staatsoper Berlin and the designated Generalmusikdirektor of the Oper Frankfurt; pretty impressive for one who has yet to hit his 30th birthday! His Met debut was justly anticipated, as across Europe he is k
Review: TOSCA at Opera Theatre Of Saint Louis
It’s a masterpiece! Tosca has opened at Opera Theatre of St.
Review: TREEMONISHA at Opera Theatre Of Saint Louis
Last Saturday Opera Theatre of St.
Review: Love It or Hate It, the Met's New MAGIC FLUTE Is a Creative Roller Coaster Ride
Of all the theatre directors that the Met has marshalled into its forces, Simon McBurney--who brought his version of Mozart’s DIE ZAUBERFLOTE (THE MAGIC FLUTE) to the Met on Friday in his house debut--may be the most successful in melding music and theatre, storytelling and visual elements.
