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ROH Rigoletto
An interesting and very enjoyable Rigoletto at ROH last night. I always forget – between encounters – just what a romping good piece this is. With John Eliot Gardiner at the helm, it started coolly,...
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The Trojans at Covent Garden
Having seen the dress rehearsal of Berlioz’s Les Troyens on 22 June, last weekend we got to see the final results of the epic effort that was put into this monumental work – and any niggles or carps...
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ENO Medea
Finally, I made it to the last night (afternoon, actually) of the ENO show that seems to have had people raving – positively, for once. After Barry Kosky’s rather preposterous Castor & Pollux,...
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JDF, JDD & GC
I just don’t seem to have the time, or perhaps it’s the energy, to keep on top of jottings about things I’ve seen. So, one concert and one cinema screening… Juan Diego Flórez and Friends: 21 April 2013...
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A bit of magic back in the old Flute
A revival of David McVicar’s gloomy-but-not-intrusive production of Die Zauberflöte doesn’t really get the blood rushing these days; in the event it was shot through with excellent performances that...
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A finely-honed Figaro
To say that Covent Garden’s latest revival of David McVicar’s production of Le Nozze di Figaro is well-choreographed sounds like an oddly limiting opening statement. In a quite profound way, though, it...
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A romping good Faust
David McVicar’s Faust was back on the Royal Opera stage, and in rather good form. Gothic backdrops, a scene in the Cabaret L’Enfer, the Les Mis-style tricolore-waving crowd number, and Méphistophélès...
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Rigoletto back with a bang
Discounting the dreadful Anna Nicole, to which wild horses couldn’t drag me back a second time, the Royal Opera’s season opened with Verdi’s dark 1851 masterpiece, Rigoletto. On 27 September, it was a...
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Fervent, but not very revolutionary
Versailles: Galerie des GlacesI wasn’t expecting to see Covent Garden’s new Andrea Chénier until next weekend, but was cajoled into a last-minute returned Upper Slips ticket for last night. For various...
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Well-matured ham
It’s great to see the increasingly fervent Twitter commendations for Andrea Chénier at Covent Garden as the run reached its climax with the last night on 6 February. Ladies & gentlemen, THAT was...
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