Tag Archives: Royal Opera

Wrestling with Demons

Wrestling with Demons Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk; opera in four acts, music by Dmitry Shostakovich, libretto by Shostakovich and Alexander Preys after the novella by Nikolai Leskov, conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano, revival of the 2004 production directed by Richard … Continue reading

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Praying Mantis

 Praying Mantis Tosca, melodrama in three acts, music composed by Giacomo Puccini, libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica, conducted by Placido Domingo, tenth revival of director Jonathan Kent’s 2006 production, sets by the late Paul Brown, Royal Opera, 19th … Continue reading

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Bitter and Twisted

  Bitter and Twisted Rigoletto, opera in three acts, music by Giuseppe Verdi, libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, after Victor Hugo’s Le Roi s’amuse, director David McVicar, orchestra conducted by Alexander Joel, Royal Opera, 14th December 2017, reviewed by LESLIE … Continue reading

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Rape Seed

Rape Seed Les Vêpres Siciliennes; Grand Opera in five acts, music composed by Giuseppe Verdi, libretto by Eugène Scribe & Charles Duveyrier, sung in French with English surtitles, directed by Stefan Herheim, conducted by Maurizio Benini, Royal Opera, 12th October 2017, reviewed … Continue reading

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Broken Lion

Broken Lion Otello; dramma lirico in four acts, music by Giuseppe Verdi, libretto by Arrigo Boito, after the play by William Shakespeare, conductor Antonio Pappano, director Keith Warner, Royal Opera, 10th July 2017, reviewed by Leslie Jones As Roberta Montemorra … Continue reading

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Lover’s Little Helper

Lover’s Little Helper  L’elisir d’amore: opera buffa in two acts; music composed by Gaetano Donizetti; libretto by Felice Romani, based on Le Philtre, by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber; conductor Bertrand de Billy; director Laurent Pelly; revival director Daniel Dooner; Royal Opera House, … Continue reading

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Bad Lieutenant

Bad Lieutenant “He dies with honour, who cannot live with honour” Madama Butterfly, music composed by Giacomo Puccini, libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica, conducted by Antonio Pappano, the Royal Opera, Thursday 30th March 2017, reviewed by Leslie Jones … Continue reading

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Dissecting Human Passions

Dissecting Human Passions Written on Skin, Royal Opera House, January 13th 2017, music composed by George Benjamin, text by Martin Crimp, directed by Katie Mitchell, reviewed by Alessandro Zummo Written on Skin comes from a close collaboration between the stage … Continue reading

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Mark my Words

Mark my Words Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, libretto and score by Richard Wagner, Royal Opera House, 13th March 2017, directed by Kasper Holten, orchestra conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano, reviewed by Leslie Jones This new production of Meistersinger, by departing … Continue reading

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ENDNOTES

ENDNOTES Manon, Jules Massenet; Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, 14 January 2014 As Christopher Anthony Meade has aptly but inelegantly observed, in opera we get the most beautiful music “allied with the greatest drivel ever to escape from the twisted mind of … Continue reading

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