Simon Godwin directs Gounod's Roméo et Juliette at Glimmerglass

Magdalena Kuźma (Juliette)

Duke Kim (Roméo) and Magdalena Kuźma (Juliette)

Magdalena Kuźma (Juliette) and Duke Kim (Roméo)

Lisa Marie Rogali (Stéphano)

By Edward Sava-Segal, 01 August 2023

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“at the start of their careers, both singers show great promise”

Reviewed at Alice Busch Opera Theater, Cooperstown on 30 July 2023

Gounod, Roméo et Juliette

Glimmerglass Opera

Joseph Colaneri, Conductor

Simon Godwin, Director

Dan Soule, Set Designer

Loren Shaw, Costume Designer

Robert Wierzel, Lighting Designer

Glimmerglass Festival Orchestra

Duke Kim, Roméo

Magdalena Kuźma, Juliette

Olivier Zerouali, Mercutio

Sergio Martinez, Frère Laurent

Stefano de Peppo, Count Capulet

Meredith Arwady, Gertrude, Juliette's nurse

Hayden Smith, Tybalt

Lisa Marie Rogali, Stéphano

John Mburu, Duke of Verona

Jonathan Patton, Pâris

Will Upham, Benvolio, nephew of Montaigu

Darren Drone, Grégorio

A dark, delicious take on Elizabeth Cree at Glimmerglass Festival

Cameron Kelsall, 28th July

Mezzo-soprano Tara Erraught anchors a fluid and appealingly staged new production of Kevin Puts' penny dreadful.

****1

Child's play: inventive, moving Rinaldo at Glimmerglass

Cameron Kelsall, 31st July

Director Louisa Proske refracts Handel's tale of warlords and witches through the prism of a juvenile dream world, aided by a game cast headed by Anthony Roth Costanzo.

****1

Brian Vu and Meredith Arwady shine in Glimmerglass Candide

David Wolfson, 8th July

Glimmerglass Opera Festival’s production of Candide leans heavily on a dry comedic sensibility, which most of the cast execute admirably.

***11

Carmen at Glimmerglass: visually striking, dramatically inconsistent

Cameron Kelsall, 18th July

Denyce Graves, once the reigning Carmen of her day, directs a new production full of interesting choices that rarely cohere.

**111

A streamlined Trovatore at the Glimmerglass Festival

Cameron Kelsall, 7th August

Rising mezzo-soprano Raehann Bryce-Davis offers a gorgeously sung and grippingly acted portrait of Verdi's gypsy.

****1

Isabel Leonard soars in Glimmerglass Festival's Songbird

Cameron Kelsall, 6th August

Set in New Orleans during the Jazz Age, this riff on Offenbach's La Périchole captures the festive spirit of the summer, despite some tired jokes.

***11

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Edward Sava-Segal

Edward has been living in New York for the last 25 years, one of the reasons being the extraordinarily rich cultural life in this city. He has studied piano and classical music in his early years. He switched later on to computer science and data architecture but he kept an unwavering interest in following the classical music phenomenon here in New York and in his travels. Edward occasionally reviews fine arts events for the most prestigious literary magazine in Romania, his home country.

Timely and timeless: Simon Godwin directs Gounod's Roméo et Juliette at Glimmerglass