Live, Video: Find classical music concert, opera, ballet and dance reviews | David Finn

Scarlett’s Frankenstein returns to the San Francisco Ballet stage

By Terez Rose, 20 March 2025

Seeing Frankenstein in its 2025 incarnation feels worthy and redemptive. It’s as vivid and cinematic as ballet gets.

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San Francisco

20 Mar 2025

Scarlett’s Frankenstein returns to the San Francisco Ballet stage

By Terez Rose

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Milan

Hojotoho! La Scala’s new Walküre opens with a stellar cast

By Laura Servidei, 05 February 2025

With bad-ass punk valkyries and rich in fantasy overtones, Sir David McVicar's La Scala Ring cycle continues.

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Milan

05 Feb 2025

Hojotoho! La Scala’s new Walküre opens with a stellar cast

By Laura Servidei

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The Australian Ballet sparkles in Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker

By Katie Lawrence, 09 December 2024

Brimming with festive season joy, the Australian Ballet gives an exuberant performance of a Peter Wright classic: The Nutcracker.

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Sydney

09 Dec 2024

The Australian Ballet sparkles in Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker

By Katie Lawrence

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The Royal Ballet's revival of Cinderella: a sparkling spectacle

By Amanda Jennings, 03 December 2024

The Royal Ballet revive Ashton's masterpiece with some superlative leading performances in a production that is visually rich and imaginative.

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London

03 Dec 2024

The Royal Ballet's revival of Cinderella: a sparkling spectacle

By Amanda Jennings

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Some thrills and a bit of a chill in Lise Davidsen's Tosca at the Met

By Robert Levine, 15 November 2024

Nézét-Séguin takes a thoroughly veristic approach in the pit. Lise Davidsen's marmoreal nobility may not be perfectly suited to the title role, but oh Lord, the voice!

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New York City

15 Nov 2024

Thrills and a chill in Lise Davidsen's Tosca at the Met

By Robert Levine

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Milan

A new Ring in Milan! Das Rheingold shines at La Scala

By Laura Servidei, 03 November 2024

La Scala presents a new production of Richard Wagner's masterpiece by David McVicar with a superb cast under the considerate baton of Simone Young.

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Milan

03 Nov 2024

A new Ring in Milan! Das Rheingold shines at La Scala

By Laura Servidei

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A captivating Così fan tutte in Sydney

By Sandra Bowdler, 01 August 2024

Opera Australia's well nigh perfect production of Mozart's Così fan tutte excels in every dimension, with an excellent ambiguous conclusion.

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Sydney

01 Aug 2024

A captivating Così fan tutte in Sydney

By Sandra Bowdler

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Swan Lake: double debuts at the Royal Ballet

By Amanda Jennings, 11 May 2024

Two very impressive debuts in the lead roles of Liam Scarlett's Swan Lake with The Royal Ballet, bodes well for the futures of Mariko Sasaki and Joseph Sissens.

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London

11 May 2024

Swan Lake: double debuts at the Royal Ballet

By Amanda Jennings

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The Royal Ballet's Swan Lake offers much to admire

By Graham Watts, 06 March 2024

Visually splendid, Liam Scarlett's Swan Lake showcases some wonderful dancing, but there is still room for improvement.

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London

06 Mar 2024

The Royal Ballet's Swan Lake offers much to admire

By Graham Watts

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Sir Bryn Terfel anchors The Royal Opera's latest revival of Der fliegende Holländer

By Dominic Lowe, 29 February 2024

Terfel's performance as the legendary sailor is stronger than ever and, one or two issues aside, this revival of Tim Albery's production is a compelling account of Wagner's first mature work.

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London

29 Feb 2024

Sir Bryn Terfel anchors The Royal Opera's Holländer revival

By Dominic Lowe

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Leeds

A Così fan tutte straight out of the Age of Enlightenment at Opera North

By Richard Wilcocks, 02 February 2024

Tim Albery's Opera North production is successfully revived, with a new cast.

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Leeds

02 Feb 2024

Così fan tutte straight out of the Age of Enlightenment in Leeds

By Richard Wilcocks

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François Girard’s Holländer returns to the Met

By Susan Stempleski, 03 June 2023

Tomasz Konieczny, as the enigmatic mariner condemned to sail the seas forever, heads a superb cast in this Met Opera revival of François Girard’s murky production of Wagner’s early masterpiece.

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New York City

03 Jun 2023

François Girard’s Holländer returns to the Met

By Susan Stempleski

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Toronto

McVicar's grim and creepy Macbeth impresses at Canadian Opera Company

By John Gilks, 28 April 2023

Sir David McVicar's grim and creepy take on Verdi's Macbeth, backed up by brilliant conducting from Speranza Scappucci and a fine performance of the title role by Quinn Kelsey, is the best thing seen at the COC since lockdown.

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Toronto

28 Apr 2023

McVicar's grim and creepy Macbeth impresses at Canadian Opera Company

By John Gilks

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Cinders returns to the ball in resplendent new clothing at The Royal Ballet

By Deborah Weiss, 27 March 2023

With sumptuous new set designs and costumes, The Royal Ballet are in splendid form in Sir Frederick Ashton's Cinderella.

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London

27 Mar 2023

Cinders returns to the ball in resplendent new clothing

By Deborah Weiss

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Girard's new Lohengrin: old-fashioned Wagner makes a return to the Met

By Kevin W Ng, 26 February 2023

The Met's new Lohengrin descends into old-fashioned hilarity, despite an excellent cast.

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New York City

26 Feb 2023

Girard's Lohengrin: old-fashioned Wagner makes a return to the Met

By Kevin W Ng

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Tim Albery's Tannhäuser gets a second revival at the Royal Opera House

By Mark Valencia, 29 January 2023

Albery's production allows the opera to speak for itself, although sluggish pacing in the pit detract from the musical merits of this revival.

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London

29 Jan 2023

Tim Albery's Tannhäuser gets a second revival at the ROH

By Mark Valencia

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Heart of darkness: Opera Australia's gothic Don Giovanni returns

By Chantal Nguyen, 05 January 2023

Andrei Kymach and Yuri Kissin deliver standout Australian debuts in a revival of Sir David McVicar's dark, unshrinking Don Giovanni.

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Sydney

05 Jan 2023

Heart of darkness: Opera Australia's gothic Don Giovanni returns

By Chantal Nguyen

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Kurzak and Fabiano star in a fresh, lyrical Tosca at the Met

By Kevin W Ng, 04 October 2022

Aleksandra Kurzak's lyrical Tosca brings out the woman behind the caricature in this revival of Sir David McVicar's lavish production.

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New York City

04 Oct 2022

Kurzak and Fabiano star in a fresh, lyrical Tosca at the Met

By Kevin W Ng

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Antony and Cleopatra: John Adams goes conventional in Shakespeare speed-read

By Mark Pullinger, 18 September 2022

Great vocal performances from Amina Edris and Gerald Finley grace John Adams' new opera, which opens San Francisco Opera’s centennial season.

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San Francisco

18 Sep 2022

Antony and Cleopatra: Adams offers a Shakespeare speed-read

By Mark Pullinger

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Balletic alchemy in Scottish Ballet's The Crucible

By Graham Watts, 14 June 2022

Helen Pickett's slick and revealing adaptation of Arthur Miller's play receives its London premiere at Sadler's Wells.

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London

14 Jun 2022

Balletic alchemy in Scottish Ballet's The Crucible

By Graham Watts

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Slick but disjointed Anna Karenina premieres in Sydney

By Chantal Nguyen, 05 April 2022

Yuri Possokhov's Anna Karenina aims to be a dark psychological drama, but its uneven character development and unengaging choreography fail to satisfy.

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Sydney

05 Apr 2022

Slick but disjointed Anna Karenina premieres in Sydney

By Chantal Nguyen

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Spirit of the arts felt as Swan Lake returns to Covent Garden

By Graham Watts, 01 March 2022

A compelling performance of this revival, dedicated by Vadim Muntagirov to the people of Ukraine.

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London

01 Mar 2022

Spirit of the arts felt as Swan Lake returns to Covent Garden

By Graham Watts

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Sunlight on stage: Opera Australia's Marriage of Figaro returns

By Chantal Nguyen, 29 January 2022

Three outstanding debuts and a warm and funny ensemble shine in David McVicar's naturalistic Marriage of Figaro.

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Sydney

29 Jan 2022

Sunlight on stage: Opera Australia's Marriage of Figaro returns

By Chantal Nguyen

Stunning visuals, but François Girard's new Fliegende Holländer disappoints at The Met

By Ako Imamura, 02 March 2020

François Girard’s production presents the moody, stormy atmosphere of Norwegian seascapes with stunning visuals, but offers few fresh ideas on the doomed love between the Dutchman and Senta.

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New York City

02 Mar 2020

François Girard's new Fliegende Holländer disappoints at The Met

By Ako Imamura

San Francisco Opera offers a dark, powerful Rusalka

By Edward Sava-Segal, 22 June 2019

Both vocally and instrumentally the performance was a high-class one

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San Francisco

22 Jun 2019

San Francisco Opera offers a dark, powerful Rusalka

By Edward Sava-Segal

Alonzo King and Bob Holman Unite to Revive Dying Languages

By Carla Escoda, 04 May 2017

The world premiere of Figures of Speech at Alonzo King LINES Ballet was notable for the striking, individual beauty of the dancers, and for its towering score, that incorporated fragments of recorded poetry in languages currently threatened with extinction.

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San Francisco

04 May 2017

Lines: Figures of Speech

By Carla Escoda

Leeds

An intelligent and welcome revival of Così fan tutte at Opera North

By Richard Wilcocks, 03 February 2016

Opera North's Così fan tutte directed by Tim Albery at the Grand Theatre, Leeds, is a welcome revival of an intelligent, nuanced production.

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Leeds

03 Feb 2016

Welcome revival of Così fan tutte at Opera North

By Richard Wilcocks