We left at the interval...

Studio Marigny, Paris, Friday September 27 2109 Production, sets and costumes: Pierre Lebon. Lighting: Bertrand Killy. Le Podestat: Laurent Deleuil. Le Capitaine Silvio: David Ghilardi. Véronique, the Podestat’s wife: Laura Neumann. Laurette, the Podestat’s daughter: Makeda Monnet. Docteur Miracle’s assistant: Pierre Lebon. Piano: Martin Surot. Lecocq I was supposed to kick my new season off last Tuesday with a concert version of Giulio Cesare at the TCE in Paris, but had instead, maddeningly, to be on stage myself at work, MC-ing a management conference. At 23.30 I got a text message from my opera-going companions saying 'Désolé... superbe soirée' - 'Sorry... superb evening.' So instead, after ending the old season with Hervé's frantic  Mam'zelle Nitouche , I kicked off the new at the Studio Marigny with another hour of madcap fun from the Palazzetto Bru Zane, who are now reviving, with their usual care and attention, France's  opéra bouffe : L...

Opéra Comique, Paris, Tuesday May 20 2014 Conductor: Jean-Pierre Haeck. Production: Arnaud Meunier. Sets: Damien Caille-Perret. Costumes: Anne Autran Dumour. Lighting: Nicolas Marie. Morgiane: Sophie Marin-Degor. Zobéïde: Christianne Bélanger. Ali-Baba: Tassis Christoyannis. Zizi: Philippe Talbot. Cassim, François Rougier. Saladin: Mark van Arsdale. Kandgiar: Vianney Guyonnet. Maboul, le Cadi: Thierry Vu Huu. Chorus: Accentus/Opéra de Rouen Haute-Normandie. Orchestra of the Opéra de Rouen Haute-Normandie. Lecocq Rigoletto was set in a circus, but Ali Baba was more fun. Some critics have grumbled about the production, but I've seen tackier, cornier ones in the same house, among them last year's "oriental" offering, Mârouf, savetier du Caire . One of the grumbles was about the transposition, in which the bazar became a shopping centre and the costumes were vaguely 70s or 80s, so it's true that the slave auction was slightly out of place; but at least we...