Tag Archives: Yvonne Howard

A sunny evening in Provence: Cilea’s L’arlesiana shines at Holland Park

Cilea: L’arlesiana Opera Holland Park, 25th July 2019 The Italian verismo of Francesco Cilea’s L’arlesiana is drenched in Provençal sunshine, less earthy than the throbbing Sicilian heat of Mascagni’s Cavalleria rusticana, but with softer, pastoral shades. At just an hour … Continue reading

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Love in a cold climate: rare Rimsky-Korsakov opera revived by Opera North

Rimsky-Korsakov: The Snow Maiden *** Opera North, Grand Theatre, Leeds, 21st January 2017 Always winter, never spring. No, not Narnia, but The Snow Maiden, Alexander Ostrovsky’s 1873 fairy tale, rooted in Russian folklore, in which Snegurochka, daughter of Father Frost … 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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