The Met's Ballo falls flat in its latest revival

Charles Castronovo (Gustavus III)

Liv Redpath (Oscar) and Quinn Kelsey (Anckarström)

Charles Castronovo (Gustavus III) and Angela Meade (Amelia)

Un ballo in maschera

By Kevin W Ng, 01 November 2023

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“for all of the Icarus imagery, Alden doesn’t probe too deeply into the psychology of Gustavo”

Reviewed at Lincoln Center: Metropolitan Opera House, New York City on 31 October 2023

Verdi, Un ballo in maschera

Metropolitan Opera

Carlo Rizzi, Conductor

David Alden, Director

Paul Steinberg, Set Designer

Brigitte Reiffenstuel, Costume Designer

Adam Silverman, Lighting Designer

The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

The Metropolitan Opera Chorus

Charles Castronovo, Gustavo, King of Sweden

Quinn Kelsey, Count Anckarström

Angela Meade, Amelia

Olesya Petrova, Madame Arvidson

Liv Redpath, Oscar

Kevin Short, Count Ribbing

Christopher Job, Count Horn

Thomas J Capobianco, Judge

Jeongcheol Cha, Cristiano

Tony Stevenson, Amelia's servant

Maxine Braham, Choreography

Asmik Grigorian strengthens the Met’s revival of Eugene Onegin

Susan Stempleski, 20th April

The Lithuanian soprano’s riveting performance as the central character in Tchaikovsky’s operatic masterpiece lights up Deborah Warner’s mostly bland production.

****1

Innocence: Saariaho’s final opera receives New York premiere

Kurt Gottschalk, 6th April

At the Metropolitan Opera, Innocence proves a gripping and perhaps divisive piece which feels real because it is a reflection of our reality, with no realistic hope of finding peace.

*****

Tristan und Isolde at the Met: staging gets in the way of the music

No’a L. bat Miri, 9th March

Michael Spyres shines in his debut as Tristan alongside powerhouse soprano Lise Davidsen as Isolde in Yuval Sharon's new, beguiling production at the Metropolitan Opera.

***11

Ailyn Pérez is the perfect Butterfly in the Met’s revival

Robert Levine, 13th January

Good Butterflys are not that difficult to come by but great ones are very very rare. Ailyn Pérez fits the bill in this revival of Anthony Minghella’s classic staging.

*****

Vocal thrills in Met’s traditional staging of Bellini’s I puritani

Susan Stempleski, 31st December

Marco Armiliato conducts a finely balanced rendition of Bellini's final masterpiece with a stellar cast headed by Lisette Oropesa and Lawrence Brownlee.

*****

Porgy and Bess returns stronger than ever at the Met

Robert Levine, 7th December

Back to Catfish Row for another revival of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess and James Robinson’s show continue to wow our writer.

*****

More reviews...

Kevin W Ng

Kevin writes about music and culture, with a focus on opera. Originally trained as a violinist, he has a particular interest in 20th-century music. He is currently based in New York City.