Blu-ray
Tchaikovsky: Pique Dame (The Queen of Spades) (Gran Teatre del Liceu)
Misha Didyk (Hermann); Emily Magee (Liza); Lado Ataneli (Count Tomsky); Ludovic Tézier (Prince Yeletsky); Ewa Podles (Countess);
"It gives us a thoroughly traditional production from the Liceu but it works because it tells the story so compellingly and because the singing and playing is excellent from everyone...Watching this DVD reawakened me to the dramatic and musical treasures of what must surely be Tchaikovskys greatest opera (with apologies to Onegin fans). This is an ideal way to introduce the opera to someone for the first time, and a great way for established Tchaikovskians to remind themselves just how great it is." (Musicweb International)
The Royal Opera Collection
Renée Fleming (Violetta Valéry (La Traviata)); Jonas Kaufmann (Don José (Carmen)); Diana Damrau (Königin der Nacht (Die Zauberflöte)); Simon Keenlyside (Papageno (Die Zauberflöte); Macbeth (Macbeth)); Anna Caterina Antonacci (Carmen (Carmen)); Joseph Calleja (Alfredo Germont (La Traviata)); Dorothea Röschmann (Pamina (Die Zauberflöte)); Mariusz Kwiecien (Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni); Król Roger (Król Roger)); Angela Denoke (Kundry (Parsifal)); René Pape (Gurnemanz (Parsifal)); Eva-Maria Westbroek (Santuzza (Cavalleria Rusticana); Giorgetta (Il tabarro)); Aleksandrs Antonenko (Turiddu/Canio (Cavalleria Rusticana; I Pagliacci); Luigi (Il tabarro));
"This production’s slow journey from darkness into the light…works well on the small screen, not least thanks to high-definition camera work and Sue Judd’s inspired direction for television. The real magic, though, is supplied by the onstage cast...In Dorothea Röschmann’s hands, Pamina emerges not so much a powerless victim of Fate but more as a passionate woman prepared to suffer in the nameof love. Her natural command of the stage is sagely employed by McVicar...Diana Damrau’s supremely sung Queen of the Night oozes class, while Simon Keenlyside’s profoundly human, touchingly sympathetic view of Papageno deserves an Olivier Award." (Die Zauberflöte - Classic FM)
Torroba: Luisa Fernanda (Teatro Real)
Plácido Domingo (Vidal Hernando); Nancy Herrera (Luisa Fernanda); José Bros (Javier Moreno); Mariola Cantarero (Duchess Carolina);
"The production at the Teatro Real in Madrid was a top-of-the-range version...Vidal is a peach of a role for Domingo:his voice easily commands its baritone range and he dominates the action, convincingly heroic in voice and figure and still able to project a greying virility in the style of Sean Connery. Nancy Herrara as Luisa and Jose Bros as Javier gave fine support." (The Independent)
Turnage: Anna Nicole (The Royal Opera)
Eva-Maria Westbroek (Anna Nicole); Gerald Finley (The Lawyer Stern); Alan Oke (Old Man Marshall); Susan Bickley (Virgie);
".It's a tremendous show...shocking it isn't; stunning it is!" (The Independent)
Verdi: Aida (Arena di Verona) - Blu-ray and 3D Blu-ray
Hui He (Aida); Marco Berti (Radames); Andrea Ulbrich (Amneris ); Ambrogio Maestri (Amonasro ); Roberto Tagliavini (The King); Antonella Trevisan (High Priestess); Antonello Ceron (A messenger); Orchestra, Chorus and Corps de Ballet of the Arena di Verona (Choir and Orchestra); Daniel Oren (Conductor); Gianfranco De Bosio (Director);
"It's straightforward, recalling Edwardian toy theatre...And the spectacle isn't overdone...Ulbrich is a fiery Amneris. But it's the Ethiopians who carry the day, with Maestri's thundering Amonasro and, above all, Chinese soprano Hui He's Aida, vocally strong and passionate and commanding a decent mezza voce" (BBC Music Magazine)