Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream opens the season at the Komische Oper

By Dan Wang, 19 September 2013

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Reviewed at Komische Oper Berlin, Berlin on 15 September 2013

Britten, A Midsummer Night's Dream

Komische Oper Berlin

Kristiina Poska, Conductor

Viesturs Kairišs, Director

David DQ Lee, Oberon

Nicole Chevalier, Tytania

Gundars Āboliņš, Actor

Alexey Antonov, Theseus

Christiane Oertel, Mezzo-soprano

Tansel Akzeybek, Lysander

Günter Papendell, Demetrius

Annelie Sophie Müller, Hermia

Adela Zaharia, Helena

Stefan Sevenich, Bass

Jens Larsen, Bass

Peter Renz, Tenor

Hans-Martin Nau, Baritone

Bernhard Hansky, Baritone

Handel’s Belshazzar at Komische Oper Berlin

Zenaida des Aubris, 28th March

The Baroque confectionery of Herbert Fritsch's production of Handel's oratorio belies a serious core which is all too close to today's headlines.

****1

Barrie Kosky directs a ferocious new Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Zenaida des Aubris, 31st January

Shostakovich's opera is laid bare in Berlin, to devastating effect, with a distinguished cast led by Ambur Braid.

****1

Masks and obsessions: Evgeny Titov’s Salome at Komische Oper Berlin

Zenaida des Aubris, 22nd November

Salome is faceless and the Dance of the Seven Veils becomes a sardonic commentary on seduction in Komische Oper Berlin's austere new staging.

****1

Opulent minimalism: Kosky directs a new staging of Akhnaten

Zenaida des Aubris, 23rd March

Barrie Kosky's new production of Philip Glass' Akhnaten for Komische Oper at the Schillertheater removes any egyptological references.

****1

A blade too dull: Kosky directs Sweeney Todd at Komische Oper

Elena Luporini, 17th November

With a brand new production by Barrie Kosky, Komische Oper Berlin's first venture into the Sondheim repertoire mostly falls flat.

**111

Kirill Serebrennikov’s Marriage of Figaro challenges Edinburgh

David Smythe, 16th August

Komische Oper Berlin's The Marriage of Figaro is staged at the Edinburgh International Festival with a strong cast headed by Penny Sofroniadou and Peter Kellner.

****1

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Dan Wang

Dan Wang is a graduate student in music history and theory at the University of Chicago.