Rossini: Semiramide ****
Albina Shagimuratova
© BBC | Chris Christodoulou
Opera Rara, Royal Albert Hall, 4th September 2016
Complete performances of Semiramide are as rare as hen’s teeth. Even at La Fenice – where the opera was given 28 times following its 1823 première, sometimes four nights in a row – cuts were inflicted, depending on the vocal state of the singers. This caused such public unrest that police intervened, compelling the cast to sing! For London, Rossini insisted that Semiramide “should be performed in its entirety, just as I wrote it for Venice.” Due to the vagaries of Proms scheduling, Opera Rara wasn’t quite permitted enough time to manage the whole thing, but came damn close.
Read the full review on Bachtrack.