Masks and marriages: Anna Bolena at Longborough Opera Festival

By Dominic Lowe, 24 June 2019

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“diction was clear and pointed, phrases shaped with care”

Reviewed at Longborough Festival Opera, Moreton-in-Marsh on 22 June 2019

Donizetti, Anna Bolena

Longborough Festival Opera

Jeremy Silver, Conductor

Jenny Miller, Director

Nate Gibson, Set Designer

Linda Richardson, Anna Bolena

Lukas Jakobski, Enrico

Caryl Hughes, Giovanna

Carolyn Dobbin, Smeton

Matthew Buswell, Lord Rochfort

Jung Soo Yun, Riccardo Percy

Dorman’s Wahnfried receives its UK premiere at Longborough

Mark Pullinger, 27th May

Longborough Festival Opera, built on Wagnerian foundations, stages the UK premiere of Avner Dorman’s ambitious cautionary tale about the Wagner clan and establishing the composer’s legacy.

***11

An enthralling Walküre at Longborough Opera Festival

David Karlin, 18th June

Who wouldn't relish the chance of seeing a Ring cycle at close quarters? Longborough's Die Walküre isn't perfect, but it consistently delivers on the story and on character interpretation.

****1

Back to the Bard: Longborough's Fairy Queen

Roy Westbrook, 29th July

Polly Graham's production turns semi-opera into “three-quarters opera”, to good effect.

***11

Don't look back: Longborough's new L'Orfeo

Roy Westbrook, 11th July

Olivia Fuchs directs Monteverdi's early opera in a sparse staging with a consistently fine cast.

***11

Fame and feuding on the Rhine: Longborough's new Götterdämmerung

Roy Westbrook, 29th May

Longborough's Ring Cycle reaches completion in the Cotswold's, effectively staged by Amy Lane.

****1

Grief compellingly explored: Die tote Stadt at Longborough

David Karlin, 27th June

An outstanding performance from Rachel Nicholls lights up Carmen Jakobi's compelling production of Korngold's exploration of grief.

****1

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Dominic Lowe

Dominic Lowe recently completed a degree in Classics, and one of his great interests is the reception of Greece and Rome in opera. A regular opera-goer since his very early teens, he is particularly keen on the hidden operatic gems of the 19th century. He is largely based in the South of England.