Saul in Prague: Better heard than seen

By Frank Kuznik, 11 February 2019

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“Válek prefers an animated, rhythmic style of Baroque that was a good fit for Saul”

Reviewed at Rudolfinum: Dvořák Hall, Prague on 8 February 2019

Handel, Saul

Roman Válek, Conductor

Adam Plachetka, Saul

Andreas Scholl, David

Natalia Rubís, Merab

Kristýna Vylíčilová, Michal

Ru Charlesworth, Jonathan

Tadeáš Hoza, High Priest

Czech Ensemble Baroque Orchestra

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***11

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Laura Servidei, 18th April

In a world where opera productions often stray into the abstract, the Wiener Staatsoper’s Tosca offers a refreshing return to tradition – and Anna Netrebko delivers a splendid performance.

****1

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Tobias Kratzer's 2024 Munich production makes its way to Amsterdam, proving that Weinberg's opera has the power to transfix.

****1

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****1

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Laura Servidei, 12th April

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****1

Art imitates art in ETO’s bracing new Pagliacci

Dominic Lowe, 10th April

Divorced from Cavalleria rusticana, English Touring Opera’s contemporary take on Leoncavallo’s masterpiece ticks all the boxes.

****1

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Frank Kuznik

Frank Kuznik is the former Editor-in-Chief and Culture Editor of The Prague Post, Central Europe’s premier English-language weekly newspaper. He currently divides his time between Prague and his hometown in the US, Cleveland, where he covers northeast Ohio's dynamic classical music scene. In Prague he is an habitué of the Rudolfinum, National Theater, State Opera and other storied classical music venues, and an unabashed fan of Czech music.