Reviews

To the moon and back To the moon and back

Yuval Sharon‘s production of The Excursions of Mr. Brouček shoots for the moon — and lands somewhat limply on Lake Constance.

Oops, I did it Onegin Oops, I did it Onegin

Wolf Trap Opera presented a lovely Eugene Onegin with particularly noteworthy performances by Magdalena Kuźma and Daniel O’Hearn.

A barrel of laughs A barrel of laughs

Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer‘s bubbly The Judgement of Paris brings a distinctly Californian terroir to operatic comedy.

Lili among thorns Lili among thorns

Tobias Picker and Aryeh Lev Stollman‘s Lili Elbe receives its first recording ahead of its stateside transition.

Wedding from hell Wedding from hell

Les Arts Florissants (lightly) stages two Charpentier rarities as a summer wedding gone wrong.

Turkish delight on a moonlit night Turkish delight on a moonlit night

While it may not be top-tier Rossini, Teatro Nuovo’s mounting of Il turco in Italia is still good summer fun.

Hell’s kitchen Hell’s kitchen

Teatro Nuovo pays tribute to a historic New York production of Don Giovanni with a talented ensemble.

Mist opportunity Mist opportunity

Lucia di Lammermoor at La Scala, starring Rosa Feola, proves as airless as this summer’s heatwaves.

Aix tremendae, salva me Aix tremendae, salva me

Festival d’Aix-en-Provence confronts the living and the dead — and its own future — through audacious productions and an intimate world premiere.

Tsar power Tsar power

Zany gags keep Zar und Zimmermann zipping along at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.

Tabor-ing under no illusions Tabor-ing under no illusions

A grandly sung revival of The Ballad of Baby Doe at Central City Opera mines poignance from America’s past and present.

His mouth is always scandalous His mouth is always scandalous

A Pasolini-inspired Tosca at La Monnaie does not quite find the pleasure in the pain.

Beyond the valley of the gods Beyond the valley of the gods

The Bayerische Staatsoper’s Ring cycle scores another triumph with Tobias Kratzer’s take on Die Walküre.

Aegean in place Aegean in place

Greek National Opera’s Medea in the ancient theater at Epidaurus is an intermittently rewarding exercise in nostalgia.

Ma queer immortelle Ma queer immortelle

San Francisco Opera hosts an exuberant tribute to queerness past and present.

Queening out Queening out

Brett Dean‘s Of One Blood casts a well-trodden Tudor tale in a poignant, new light.

Et O ces voix d’enfants Et O ces voix d’enfants

Brundibár at the Opéra Comique combines whimsy with historicity to sobering effect.

A little tenderness A little tenderness

The premiere recording of David T. Little’s What Belongs to You reveals a work of both tenderness and artistic tenacity.

Mahler if ya hear me Mahler if ya hear me

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, leading the Met Orchestra, and Joyce DiDonato continue their exploration of Mahler at Carnegie Hall.

Fifty percent illusion Fifty percent illusion

Opera Theatre of Saint Louis does its best to give magic in its summer productions of Roméo et Juliette and A Streetcar Named Desired. 

Super rich kids Super rich kids

Wolf Trap Opera triumphs in a fizzy, fun Cenerentola.

A game of hoarse A game of hoarse

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s concert Rigoletto hits some vocal turbulence

Sister, sister, oh so fair Sister, sister, oh so fair

Conductor Eun Sun Kim and soprano Elza van der Heever play to their strengths in a piercing revival of Elektra at San Francisco Opera.

Nun the wiser Nun the wiser

Matthew Travisano has such doubts about Douglas Cuomo‘s opera recently seen at Opera Parallèle.