Tag Archives: Festival d’Aix-en-Provence

Tangled plot, sensuous score: Cavalli’s Erismena illuminates the Jeu de Paume

Posted on July 8, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Cavalli: Erismena *** Théâtre du Jeu de Paume, Aix-en-Provence You know you’re attending Baroque opera when the names of most of the characters (a) begin with a vowel and (b) are near anagrams of each other. With Erimante, Erismena, Orimeno … Continue reading →

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A rake’s progress: Mozart’s Don Giovanni let loose in Aix

Posted on July 7, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Mozart: Don Giovanni ***** Théâtre de l’Archevêché, Aix-en-Provence Less than 24 hours after Stravinsky’s Rake bounded his way across the stage of the Théâtre de l’Archevêché, it was the turn of Mozart’s Don Giovanni (whose complete title is The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni) to face … Continue reading →

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McBurney paints The Rake’s Progress onto a blank canvas in Aix

Posted on July 6, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Stravinsky: The Rake’s Progress **** Théâtre de l’Archevêché, Aix-en-Provence A blank sheet of paper can intimidate or inspire. The fresh page can stifle a writer, trapped in the glare of expectation, or can encourage daring originality, be it words in … Continue reading →

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Carmen as therapy: Tcherniakov challenges clichés but is stumped in Aix

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Bizet: Carmen ** Grand Théâtre de Provence, Aix-en-Provence, 4th July 2017 Love may well be a rebellious bird, but that’s as nothing to maverick director Dmitri Tcherniakov. In his beloved Russian repertoire he displays genius – his recent Snow Maiden in Paris fully … Continue reading →

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Boesmans’ dark Pinocchio opens Festival d’Aix-en-Provence

Posted on July 4, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Boesmans: Pinocchio *** Grand Théâtre de Provence, Aix-en-Provence, 3rd July 2017 If I wrote that I loved Philippe Boesmans’ Pinocchio, my nose may grow a little. Commissioned to open the 2017 Festival d’Aix en Provence, Boesmans’ opera finds the 81-year-old composer in … Continue reading →

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