An adventurous La Damnation de Faust in Rome

By James Imam, 15 December 2017

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“The director's boundless imagination is matched with keen musical instinct”

Reviewed at Teatro Costanzi, Teatro dell'Opera, Rome on 14 December 2017

Berlioz, La Damnation de Faust

Teatro dell'Opera di Roma

Daniele Gatti, Conductor

Damiano Michieletto, Director

Paolo Fantin, Set Designer

Carla Teti, Costume Designer

Pavel Černoch, Faust

Alex Esposito, Méphistophélès

Veronica Simeoni, Marguerite

Goran Jurić, Brander

Coro del Teatro dell'Opera di Roma

Orchestra del Teatro dell'Opera di Roma

Handel’s Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno returns to Rome

Pia Maltri, 7th April

Robert Carsen’s staging of Handel's oratorio arrives, via Salzburg, in the city where Handel composed it in 1707.

****1

Ariadne in Rome: David Hermann’s Strauss staging highlights contrasts

Pia Maltri, 1st March

In an opera rarely staged in Italy, David Hermann skilfully masters the metatheatrical challenges posed by the libretto to Ariadne auf Naxos.

****1

Abandon all hope: Lucia Ronchetti's Inferno receives Italian premiere

Pia Maltri, 19th February

The Italian premiere of Lucia Ronchetti’s Inferno at the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma uses Dante’s original verses, but her score fails to match their beauty.

***11

Livermore’s successful Bohème opens at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma

Pia Maltri, 14th January

Originally staged at the Caracalla Baths in 2014, Davide Livermore’s production comes in from the cold.

****1

Wagner’s Lohengrin finally returns – swanless – to Rome

Pia Maltri, 27th November

Damiano Michieletto is entrusted with the first staging of Lohengrin in Rome for 50 years, but his distracting staging is redeemed by the musical side of things.

***11

Peter Sellars directs Italian debut of Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana Mater

Pia Maltri, 11th October

This co-production, previously seen in San Francisco, is more of a semi-staging, convinces thanks to committed performances from a cast led by Fleur Barron.

****1

More reviews...

James Imam

James Imam is an arts journalist writing for publications including The Financial Times, The Times, Musical America and Opera magazine. He grew up in Manchester, read anthropology at Cambridge and has since lived in Milan. As a once-aspiring countertenor he has an abiding interest in Baroque music.

Dark humour: Michieletto and Gatti provide an adventurous La Damnation de Faust