Edinburgh Fringe: A Tapestry of Many Threads by Alexander McCall Smith and Tom Cunningham

A contrasting Double Bill of classic Purcell and a little-known French absurdist opera by Poulenc provides an entertaining evening of contrasts.

With a cast of over 20 parts, here sung by 18 soloists, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland made a bold choice by staging Monteverdi’s Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria to showcase the current students at the Opera School. Continuing the “Opera Up Close and Personal” series, this was performed in the tiny opera studio to an audience of around 100, creating an intimate evening of early music.

Claudio Monteverdi was employed by Victor Gonzaga, the Duke of Mantua, but was dismissed from the court when his son Francesco Gonzaga took title in 1612. Monteverdi moved to Venice to take up the appointment of Director of Music at St Mark’s Basilica.

Die Regisseurin Brigitte Fassbaender beweist einen grünen Daumen für Mozarts frühes Dramma giocosa und lässt neben mitreißend witzigem Szenenspiel einfühlsame Charakterporträts entstehen.

Gegen neumodisch zeitgenössische Kriegsspiele und KI-generierte Bilderfluten wusste sich das Opernensemble des Staatstheaters Nürnberg mit romantischer Klangsensibilität zu behaupten.