Tag Archives: Royal Opera

“Esultate!” Kunde’s Otello impresses at Covent Garden

Posted on December 10, 2019 by Mark Pullinger

Verdi: Otello Royal Opera, 9th December 2019 It’s good to have expectations confounded. For much of his career, American tenor Gregory Kunde specialised in bel canto repertoire, his light, flexible voice ideal for Rossini with easy top notes that also … Continue reading →

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Great Britten: Death in Venice returns to Covent Garden in superb new staging

Posted on November 22, 2019 by Mark Pullinger

Britten: Death in Venice Royal Opera, 21st November 2019 “Britten doesn’t sell.” Until Deborah Warner’s impressive production of Billy Budd last April, The Royal Opera hadn’t put any Britten on the main stage since Richard Jones’ (admittedly naff) Gloriana in … Continue reading →

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Don Pasquale falls flat in Michieletto’s cruel comedy at Covent Garden

Posted on October 15, 2019 by Mark Pullinger

Donizetti: Don Pasquale Royal Opera, 14th October 2019 When newlywed “Sofronia” slaps Don Pasquale and it provokes titters of laughter, you’ve got a problem. It’s the point in Act 3 where the lesson that the elderly bachelor is being taught … Continue reading →

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Political power games in Kosky’s Agrippina at Covent Garden

Posted on September 24, 2019 by Mark Pullinger

Handel: Agrippina Royal Opera, 23rd September 2019 We were promised Agrippina as House of Cards, full of intrigue and political machinations, yet Barrie Kosky plays his joker frequently in a staging which borders on farce. On an austere set, he … Continue reading →

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Carmen minus charisma: a limp revival of Kosky’s production at Covent Garden

Posted on June 25, 2019 by Mark Pullinger

Bizet: Carmen Royal Opera, 24th June 2019 Barrie Kosky’s Carmen is back, so grab the pedometer. “Who needs cardio classes?” tweeted the Royal Opera Chorus wryly after Saturday’s matinee. Kosky strips almost all sense of Spain from the setting and … Continue reading →

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