Some enchanted evening: La rondine at Iford

By Charlotte Valori, 17 June 2014

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Reviewed at Iford Manor, Bradford on Avon on 14 June 2014

Puccini, La rondine

If Opera

Ilona Domnich, Magda

Alexander James Edwards, Ruggero

Ruth Jenkins-Róbertsson, Lisette

Christopher Turner, Prunier

Celena Bridge, Yvette

Adam Gilbert, Périchaud

Charles Johnston, Rambaldo

Charlie Lucas, Lighting Designer

Escape to the country: Bernstein's Candide at Iford

Charlotte Valori, 29th May

Jeff Clarke's characteristically high-octane style seems made for the sarcastic, hyperactive existential madness that is Candide in this little gem of a production for Iford.

****1

A Fairy Queen at Iford

Charlotte Valori, 23rd July

An especially adapted version of Purcell's Fairy Queen, reworked by Timothy Nelson, inspires an exceptional reading from a talented young cast at Iford.

****1

So foul and fair a day: Verdi's Macbeth at Iford

Charlotte Valori, 11th June

Iford's stone cloister makes a suitably eerie setting for a fine traditional account of Verdi's Macbeth, notable for its powerful male leads, from Iford Festival Opera and the CHROMA Ensemble.

****1

Agrippina: Power-dressed and power hungry

Charlotte Valori, 25th July

Bruno Ravella's version of Handel's Agrippina moves the action from Classical Rome to the avaricious Eighties in a sharp, amusing night at Iford.

***11

Getting behind the mask: an intense Ballo at Iford

Charlotte Valori, 6th June

While it may seem perfectly formed for the full grand opera treatment, Verdi's classic Un ballo in maschera can also work extremely well on a small scale, as shown by this intimate and compelling treatment by Timothy Nelson at Iford.

****1

Irish National Opera’s new Rusalka intrigues more than it convinces

Andrew Larkin, 22nd March

Netia Jones’ modern reimagining intrigues more than it convinces, but still makes a strong case for Dvořák’s dark fairy tale.

***11

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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.