North Cotswold

L’elisir d’amore (1832), Donizetti, 2hr 03, Garsington 2025. A highly romantic set with characterful performances by Charlotte Jane Kennedy and acrobatic tenor Oleksiy Palchykov. My favourite production of this piece. Read more

Aida (1870), Verdi, 2hr 37, Royal Opera 2017. Conductor Antonio Pappano leads a thrilling performance in director Robert Carsen’s staging with an anti-war message. A modern production that really captures the spirit of the piece. Read more

The Gondoliers (1889), Gilbert & Sullivan, 2hrs 19mins, Scottish Opera 2021. Two happy-go-lucky gondoliers discover that one of them is heir to the throne of a distant kingdom, in what is probably Sullivan’s best operetta in musical terms.  Nonsensical fun to start the year. Read more

Florencia en las Amazonas (1996), Catan, 1hr 45, Met, 2023. The romantic tale of an Amazon voyage to a real Opera House in the jungle. Modern score but ‘murmurs of Ravel and the film music of Technicolor epics. The music glistens like sun on the river; it is graceful and ravishing. And, absolutely tonal.’ – Backtrack Read more

Le Comte Ory (1828), Rossini, 2hr 23, Met 2011. Vaudevillian slapstick humour in which Juan Diego Flórez, as the Count Ory, adopts every conceivable disguise, including a nun’s costume, in order to get inside that of the Countess Adèle, beautifully played by German soprano Diana Damrau. Read more

Tosca (1900), Puccini, 2hr, Met 2018. A typical David McVicar production with vivid realism and magnificent sets that only the Met can afford. Sonya Yoncheva stars in the title role with Željko Lučić (pictured right) looking the epitome of evil as Scarpia, and the handsome Vittorio Grigolo as Tosca’s artist lover Cavaradossi. Read more

Cosi Fan Tutte (1790), Mozart, 2hr 57, Glyndebourne 2006. A lovely production by ex National Theatre boss Nick Hytner, with the delightful Miah Persson and Anke Vondung. [Click "Cosi Fan Tutte" above for picture.] Read more

Platee is the 1745 comic opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau. It is historically quite an important piece, but the reason for showing it is above all that it is very funny.  The production by the National Opera, Paris, was nominated in 2022 by MusicWeb International for Recording of the Year. Director Laurent Pelly presents Platee as Queen… Read more

Mephistophele (1868), Boito, 2hr 25, San Francisco 2013. A startling production and one of the great showpieces for bass with Samuel Ramey in the title role. {Click "Mephistophele" above for picture.} Read more

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday 16 April for a screening of Donizetti's classic comedy L'Elisir d'amore (The Love Potion), starring Bryn Terfel as the trickster Dr Dulcamara, the lovely Nadine Sierra as Adina and Liparit Avetisyan as the love-lorn Nemorino. It is an acclaimed production by Laurent Pelly, revived at Covent Garden in 2023. Read more