We left at the interval...

Opéra Comique, Paris, 17 December 2024 An edited version of t his post will be published on  Parterre.com Conductor: William Christie. Production: Robert Carsen. Sets and Costumes: Gideon Davey. Lighting: Robert Carsen, Peter Van Praet. Choreography: Nicolas Paul. Video: Renaud Rubiano. Hébé/Naïade: Emmanuelle de Negri. Sapho/Iphise/Eglé: Lea Desandre. L'Amour/Le ruisseau/Une bergère: Ana Vieira Leite. Momus/Mercure: Marc Mauillon. Hymas/Tirtée: Renato Dolcini. Le ruisseau/Lycurgue: Cyril Auvity. Eurilas/Alcée: Lisandro Abadie. Thélème: Antonin Rondepierre. Le Fleuve: Matthieu Walendzik. Les Arts Florissants. Photos: Vincent Pontet William Christie turned 80 on December 19 this year. He chose, as his present to himself, to perform Rameau’s Les Fêtes d’Hébé in a new staging by Robert Carsen, at the Opéra Comique - Christie's thirteenth production there since the famous Atys of 1987. In doing so, he offered a magnificent Christmas present to us all. As this is one of Rameau’s b...

 

ONP Palais Garnier, Tuesday December 10 2024 An edited version of t his post will be published on Parterre.com Conductor: Susanna Mälkki. Production and lighting: Olivier Py. Sets and Costumes: Pierre-André Weitz. Tom Rakewell: Ben Bliss. Nick Shadow: Iain Paterson. Trulove: Clive Bayley. Ann Trulove: Golda Schultz. Mother Goose: Justina Gringytė. Baba the Turk: Jamie Barton. Sellem: Rupert Charlesworth. Keeper of the madhouse: Vartan Gabrielian. Voices from the crowd: Ayumi Ikehata, Frédéric Guieu. Solo voice: Laurent Laberdesque. Orchestra and Chorus of the Opéra National de Paris.  Photos: Guergana Damianova/OnP After playing thoroughly modern Millie, seeing (and struggling to write up) three new works in succession, I was back on more familiar ground this week with The Rake’s Progress at the Palais Garnier. The production isn’t new: it was Olivier Py’s first opera for Paris, in 2008, and it returned in 2012. But for some reason, it had escaped my attention till this seaso...

La Monnaie, Brussels, Sunday December 8 2024 An edited version of t his post will be published on Parterre.com Conductor: Ariane Matiakh. Production: Ivo Van Hove. Sets and Lighting: Jan Versweyveld. Costume Designer: An D’Huys. Video: Christopher Ash. Helena Ekdahl: Susan Bullock. Oscar Ekdahl: Peter Tantsits. Emilie Ekdahl: Sasha Cooke. Fanny: Lucie Penninck. Alexander: Jay Weiner. Bishop Edvard Vergerus: Thomas Hampson. Justina: Anne Sofie von Otter. Isak Jacobi: Loa Falkman. Ismaël: Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen. Aron: Alexander Sprague. Carl Ekdahl: Justin Hopkins. Lydia: Polly Leech. Gustav Adolf Ekdahl: Gavan Ring. Alma Ekdahl: Margaux de Valensart. Paulina: Marion Bauwens. Esmeralda: Blandine Coulon. La Monnaie Symphony Orchestra. Photos: © Matthias Baus Back to Brussels last Sunday for my third new opera of the season (after The Time of our Singing , also at La Monnaie, and Picture a day like this , at the Opéra Comique): Mikael Karlsson’s Fanny and Alexander, with a libretto by Ro...

The December edition of France's Opéra Magazine arrived this week. Their top recording choice, or coup de coeur , with one of their 'Diamond' ratings, is Marina Rebeka's new Norma ,with Luciano Ganci as Pollione, Marlo Mimica, Karine Deshayes, Anita Jankovska, Gustavo De Gennaro and the forces of the Teatro Real de Madrid, under John Fiore. ' The 21st century now possesses two reference versions of Norma recorded in the studio, at once radically different and complementary. Both use new critical editions based on the autograph manuscript and other available sources - which is why, at some points, we don't hear the same music. (...) they deserve to be a part of every record collection .'