Updated version of Strauss’ masterpiece Der Rosenkavelier features some sensational vocal performances and sensitive conducting.
Talbot/Wheeldon: The Winter’s Tale [The Royal Ballet/Briskin] Blu-ray Review
Following Christopher Wheeldon’s successful ballet, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, The Winter’s Tale is one terrific show that is as good as its predecessor.
Adam: Giselle [The Royal Ballet/Wright] Blu-ray Review
This popular ballet gets a spectacular production in all respects and becomes a top choice among the Blu-ray versions
Mozart: Don Giovanni [Royal Opera/Luisotti] Blu-ray Review
An interesting and mostly effective reworking of Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni is well cast and features some nifty visual effects.
Rossini: L’Italiana in Algeri [Teatro Communale di Bologna] Blu-ray Review
An upbeat and updated production of a classic comic opera, this Rossini Festival production of L’Italiana in Algeri on Blu-ray offers many smiles, outright guffaws, and nonstop shtick.
Richard Strauss: Ariadne auf Naxos [Glyndebourne Festival/Jurowski] Blu-ray Review
One of Richard Strauss’ vocal masterpieces, this Ariadne auf Naxos has its vocal strengths but is undermined by some bizarre dramaturgy.
Rameau: Hippolyte et Aricie [Glyndebourne Festival/Christie] Blu-ray Review
This Blu-ray premiere of Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie has some interesting if offbeat staging and is supported by great videography.
Donizetti: Don Pasquale [Glyndebourne Festival/Mazzola] Blu-ray Review
A delightfully frothy and intimate Glyndebourne production of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale is given a superb realization by all involved
Shakespeare: Richard II [Royal Shakespeare Company/Gregory Doran] Blu-ray Review
Director Dornan and his strong cast deliver a compelling remounting of Shakespeare’s account of the downfall of English monarch Richard II
Britten: Death in Venice [English National Opera/Gardner] Blu-ray Review
Benjamin Britten’s final opera receives a superb reading by Edward Gardner and a moving portrayal of the lead role by John Graham-Hall