Prom 7: The Fairy Queen

Royal Albert Hall, London The annual Glyndebourne visit to the Proms is a great tradition, but Purcell's semi-opera was missing much of its spectacle on the Albert Hall platform, writes Erica Jeal

The Fairy Queen

GlyndebourneA staggering new production - you're a fool if you miss it, says Tim Ashley

Giulio Cesare

GlyndebourneWitty, sexy and tragic, it is the best thing Glyndebourne has done in the last decade, says Martin Kettle

Falstaff

Glyndebourne: For all its wit and astuteness, this update of Verdi's great comedy lacks danger and magic, says Tim Ashley

Hänsel und Gretel

GlyndebourneIt's blunt but it works, and the emphasis is on the fun, writes Erica Jeal

Hansel und Gretel

Glyndebourne, East SussexPelly's staging is superficial and profoundly unmusical

Carmen

There is no mystery as to why innovative modern directors of Carmen want to get beyond the 19th-century view of Bizet’s opera as a tragic love story in an exotic Andalusian setting. The trouble is that this pretty much describes … Continue reading →

L’Incoronazione di Poppea

“Without doubt the sexiest piece ever written,” is how director Robert Carsen described L’Incoronazione di Poppea in a recent interview. His new staging of Monteverdi’s masterpiece, however, though at times explicit, could hardly be considered erotica. It is dark, detached … Continue reading →

Macbeth

Thrilling and original though it is, something about Verdi’s Macbeth refuses to work. It is hard to say whether the fault lies with Shakespeare, Verdi, the librettist Piave, or with directors who always seem to struggle to make it cohere. … Continue reading →