| Date and venue | Title |
|---|---|
| 24-Jul-2012 Holland Park Theatre | Verdi's Falstaff at Opera Holland Park |
 With Verdi's centenary coming up, his last opera Falstaff has had more attention than usual, with this production at Opera Holland Park following hot on the heels of Robert Carsen's new production at Covent Garden. I don't know whether OHP's director Annilese Miskimmon was aware of Carsen's production, but she certainly ended up with a similar aesthetic, set in twentieth century England with pastel-clad posh housewives and much brown clothing for the men.Read full review... | |
| 22-Jun-2012 Holland Park Theatre | Zanetto and Gianni Schicchi: Opera Holland Park's Florentine Double Bill |
 After their Mascagni debut last year, with L’amico Fritz (the composer’s first post-Cavalleria opera), Opera Holland Park have set out to uncover more music from the so-called ‘one-hit-wonder’ – still known to most for his smash verismo opera alone. This year, the opera company brings to London audiences an even more rarely performed work by the Tuscan-born musician: the one-act opera Zanetto, in a double bill with Puccini’s much more popular musical comedy, Gianni Schicchi.Read full review... | |
| 18-Sep-2011 Royal Opera House, Covent Garden | A star-studded Faust at the Royal Opera |
 CATHERINE ASHMORE.jpg) In this Royal Opera production of Gounod's Faust, there's no question about who's in charge. Not only does the devil get all the best lines, but he bosses the show from beginning to end. Clad in feathered hat, long curly wig and reminiscent of the Laughing Cavalier, René Pape plays Mephistopheles quite superbly, alternating between mercurial bouffe comic lines and extreme sardonic nastiness. His voice was smooth and controlled and his whole presence radiated command.
Read full review... | |
| 29-Jul-2010 Holland Park Theatre | Verdi's La Forza del Destino at Opera Holland Park |
 La Forza del Destino isn't performed nearly as often as Verdi's most popular works: this year's production at Opera Holland Park is the first time it's been staged in the UK for several years. This is odd, because musically, it's a strong contender for being Verdi's greatest work of all, at least in terms of its melodies and the way they are developed and woven into the story: this opera has more melodies that stay with you as you leave the opera house than any except perhaps Rigoletto.Read full review... | |
