We left at the interval...

Théâtre des Champs Elysées, Paris, Friday February 9 2018 Conductor: Jérémie Rhorer. Production: Olivier Py. Sets and costumes: Pierre-André Weitz. Lighting: Bertrand Killy. Blanche de la Force: Patricia Petibon. Mère Marie de l’Incarnation: Sophie Koch. Madame Lidoine: Véronique Gens. Sœur Constance de Saint Denis: Sabine Devieilhe. Madame de Croissy: Anne Sofie von Otter.Le Chevalier de la Force: Stanislas de Barbeyrac. Le Marquis de la Force: Nicolas Cavallier. Mère Jeanne de l’Enfant Jésus: Sarah Jouffroy. Sœur Mathilde: Lucie Roche. Le Père confesseur du couvent: François Piolino. Le premier commissaire: Enguerrand de Hys. Le second commissaire, un officier: Arnaud Richard. Thierry, le médecin, le geôlier: Matthieu Lécroart. Orchestre National de France. Chœur du Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. Ensemble Aedes. Olivier Py’s staging of Dialogues des Carmélites has been seen in Paris before and played at La Monnaie in December, but this was my first chance to see it. It is ver...

Opéra National de Paris – Bastille, November 13, 2004 Conductor: Kent Nagano. Production: Francesca Zambello. Le Marquis de la Force: Alain Vernhes. Blanche: Dawn Upshaw. Le Chevalier: Yann Beuron. L'Aumonier du Carmel: Michel Sénéchal. Madame de Croissy: Felicity Palmer. Madame Lidoine: Eva Maria Westbroek. Mère Marie: Anja Silja. Soeur Constance: Patricia Petibon. Orchestre and Chorus of the Opéra National de Paris. If this were Japan, the tenor Michel Sénéchal (Aumonier), now over 75, would long ago have been declared a living national treasure. It’s the custom, when he takes a bow, to give him an ovation for the mere fact that he’s still treading the boards and singing a few notes. So it’s a measure of the overall ill-humour of the Paris public at present (mentioned in my recent review of St François d’Assise ) that his showing in Poulenc’s Dialogues has been severely criticised and people have said it’s time for him to stop (I noted, yesterday evening, that he didn’t...