Category Archives: Opera

Cavalleria rusticana & Pagliacci: murder, lust and fiery singing

Posted on December 1, 2023 by Mark Pullinger

Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana; Leoncavallo: Pagliacci Royal Opera House, 30th November 2023 Anna The verismo twins Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci are back, fatally entwined since 1893, when Pietro Mascagni and Ruggero Leoncavallo’s one-act operas first shared a double bill. Their deadly … Continue reading →

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A bloodless Salome at Staatsoper Hamburg

Posted on November 29, 2023 by Mark Pullinger

Strauss: Salome Staatsoper Hamburg, 29th October “I believe we must leave the killing out, when all is done.” Dmitri Tcherniakov seems to have taken a leaf from Starveling’s book in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. His Salome for Staatsoper Hamburg is … Continue reading →

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Rouen takes Carmen back to her opéra comique roots

Posted on November 25, 2023 by Mark Pullinger

Bizet: Carmen Opéra de Rouen, 30th September 2023 Opera fans allergic to dust mites may have approached Opéra de Rouen’s “new” Carmen with caution. In collaboration with the indefatigable Palazzetto Bru Zane, the house staged a production based on the … Continue reading →

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Top ten operas 2022

Posted on December 26, 2022 by Mark Pullinger

This was the year that opera houses got back to something approaching “normality” post-pandemic. It’s easy to forget that at the start of 2022, Covid restrictions were still very much in place: visiting Vienna in January, one needed proof of … Continue reading →

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Ettore Bastianini: Icon

Posted on September 24, 2022 by Mark Pullinger

The great baritone Ettore Bastianini was born 100 years ago (24th September 1922). To mark the centenary of the great baritone’s birth, here is the “Icons” piece I wrote about his career on disc from Gramophone magazine (April 2019): Every … Continue reading →

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