Blame game: Strauss' Daphne at Grimeborn

By Charlotte Valori, 25 August 2015

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“Justine Viani gave a subtle and compelling performance as Daphne”

Reviewed at Arcola Theatre Studio 1, London on 20 August 2015

Strauss R., Daphne

Opera at Home

José Manuel Gandia, Conductor, Director

Justine Viani, Daphne

John Upperton, Apollo

Panos Ntourntoufis, Leukippos

Violetta Gawara, Gaea

James Gower, Peneios

Borja Gómez-Ferrer, Tenor

Dario Dugandzic, Baritone

Milena Dobrzycka, Soprano

Marta Lopez, Piano

Erika Mädi Jones, Soprano

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Mark Valencia, 21st May

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****1

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David Karlin, 21st May

Ted Huffman brings some interesting ideas to his first Glyndebourne production. Excellent singing is let down by indifferent physical acting.

***11

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Jeremy Eccles, 16th May

Emerging from different incarnations of Leah Purcell’s play, George Palmer’s opera develops traditional Dreaming elements from Aboriginal mythology, premiering in Brisbane.

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Elena Luporini, 16th May

The German premiere of Olga Neuwirth’s Orlando at the Komische Oper cements it as a postmodern grand opéra – for better or for worse.

***11

Anna Netrebko gatecrashes Riccardo Chailly’s La Scala farewell

Laura Servidei, 16th May

Riccardo Chailly’s final new production as artistic director is a celebration of Verdi and of a conductor whose relationship with the Milanese audience has clearly deepened over the years.

*****

Iolanta paired with Luonnotar in dramatic Helsinki double bill

No’a L. bat Miri, 15th May

In Helsinki, Antony McDonald pairs Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta with a staged version of Sibelius’ tone poem Luonnotar, brilliantly voiced by soprano Silja Aalto.

*****

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Charlotte Valori

Charlotte Valori read Classics at Christ Church, Oxford. As a classicist, her main interest is Greek tragedy and its reception by later cultures, which has led to a continuing passion for theatre and opera. Charlotte reviews for several online magazines, and won the Bachtrack Opera Award 2015 for Best Written English Review. Follow her on Twitter @operissima.