Opera is artifice: Giulio Cesare's conquest of Houston

Review

Costanzo's take on the title role, which HGO's Thursday Facebook release went to great lengths to publicize as a take on Indiana Jones, was very effective indeed, in spite of this whimsical comparison. He well personified the countertenor as young virile male hero, particularly being skilled in the arias that showed off his agility and fiery, piercing upper register.

A fierce mob wife: Rodelinda at ENO

Review

While not a total work of feminist theatre, I do like seeing operas from the 18th century where women are shown as strong-willed characters in control of their own destinies and not being controlled by men. In fact, the plot is driven by how much the other characters of the opera need Rodelinda.

"A fascinating marriage of art forms": Kayoi Komachi

Review

In traditional Noh, there is far less in terms of story and action than you would expect in a Western-style play or opera. So much of the story is often based in metaphor, and the performers, rather than acting out a series of events, are conveying the essence of a story instead of enacting it.

A fiery love triangle: Les feluettes at Edmonton Opera

Review

Kevin March's score is a tour de force: truly sensitive and theatrical. It was tender and loving when it needed to be, with subtle dissonances that hint of the conflict lurking in the shadows. The score magnificently plays homage to the musical language of Debussy and other great French composers of the early 20th century.

La traviata shows Houston how to arise

Review

I would say that this production is a very reasonable first opera to go to, all things considered, and that this is a production which will have delights to offer any but the most snobbish operagoer. For the seasoned conoisseur, it will offer orchestral variety, fluent dramatic text-setting, and proof that Italian composers can simultaneously manage subtlety ands passion.

Fuelled by female oppression: Written on Skin

Review

The music develops in parallel to the narrative, twisting and turning in response to the events portrayed. From the subtle, gliding arcs of the strings during the seduction to the terrifying crescendos accompanying The Boy's murder, the score varies immensely. Benjamin is especially gifted at disseminating horror, the overwhelming psychological intensity of the opera's key moments becoming almost unbearable.

The TSO pays homage to Maureen Forrester

Review

Forrester became known for her interpretations of Mahler and for her professional relationship with the composer's protegé Bruno Walter, so it's no surprise to find the composer on the program. After the intermission, German-Canadian tenor Michael Schade joined Ms. Platts for Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth), one of the composer's best loved works.

For kids & grown-ups alike: The Scorpion's Sting

Review

It must be a difficult task, to write a work specifically for young people that does not come off as overly moralistic or saccharine. Happily, the gist of The Scorpions' Sting - the power of forgiveness and the importance of teamwork - avoids sentimentality by being genuinely funny, (alternating effectively between sarcasm and overt goofiness).

Luxury at arm's length: Arabella

Review

A woman with a spine is somewhat of a rare find in opera, and so it's hard to admit that Arabella is a woman who warrants very little empathy - even from this female reviewer. Arabella's insistence on waiting for the "right man" among her train of suitors is something that's admirable and surprisingly contemporary even for this 1932 opera.

An isolated tenor in an operatic masterwork: Les contes d'Hoffmann

Review

This production's prologue opened with a sequence of generic opera tropes that undermined the opera's quality. One cliché followed another: a bad silent-movie love-pantomime, uninspired park and bark narration, a silly "Oliver Twist" money pouch, muggy chorus acting, and way too many people standing on tables. This brand of stale opera is what convinces people the form is dying.