Tag Archives: Madeleine Shaw

Christiane Lutz casts Rigoletto into the limelight as Charlie Chaplin

Verdi: Rigoletto Glyndebourne, 17th October 2019 Wandering Glyndebourne’s foyer in the interval of its first ever production of Rigoletto, there was a common thread of conversation: what on earth was going on? Those not in earnest discussion were rifling through … Continue reading

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Full immersion, total immolation: Götterdämmerung crowns Opera North’s magnificent Ring

Wagner: Götterdämmerung ***** Opera North, Royal Festival Hall, 3rd July 2016 Wagner would have made a dreadful Neighbours scriptwriter. His “Previously inThe Ring” at the start of Götterdämmerung is hardly snappy, as the three Norns wind the rope of destiny and … Continue reading

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Disobedient daughter, outraged wife: Wotan’s woes mount in Opera North’s Die Walküre

Wagner: Die Walküre **** Opera North, Royal Festival Hall, 29th June 2016 In Anna Russell’s wittily deadpan analysis of Wagner’s Ring cycle, she describes Wotan as “the head god” – pausing for dramatic effect before adding “and he’s a crashing … Continue reading

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Dipping a toe into the Rhine: Wagner therapy from Opera North

Wagner: Das Rheingold **** Opera North, Royal Festival Hall, 28th June 2016 Richard Jones has a lot to answer for. His cartoon-kitsch Ring for The Royal Opera back in 1994-5 scarred me so deeply that I’ve been reluctant to return … Continue reading

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Miller’s ‘mafioso’ Rigoletto still powerfully persuasive

Verdi: Rigoletto**** English National Opera, 21st September 2009 Jonathan Miller’s mafioso take on Verdi’s Rigoletto premiered at English National Opera in 1982, since when it’s become a company stalwart. This is its twelfth revival and the powers that be obviously … Continue reading

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