Ponchielli: La Gioconda
Großes Festspielhaus, Salzburg, 23rd March 2024
Anna Netrebko (La Gioconda) and Tareq Nazmi (Alvise)
© Bernd Uhlig
There’s more to La Gioconda than The Dance of the Hours, although Disney’s animated classic Fantasia boosted the ballet music’s fame. The Royal Opera House has never staged Amilcare Ponchielli’s opera before (there were two concert performances in 2004) but Covent Garden’s top brass — Oliver Mears and Antonio Pappano — were at the helm for this new production at Salzburg’s Easter Festival.