Rising stars have a crazy day: Figaro returns to Covent Garden

By Roy Westbrook, 10 January 2022

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“Lombardi... lovely tone, a long lyrical line, and breath control that enables both”

Reviewed at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 9 January 2022

Mozart, Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro)

The Royal Opera

Sir Antonio Pappano, Conductor

Sir David McVicar, Director

Tanya McCallin, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Paule Constable, Lighting Designer

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden

Royal Opera Chorus

Riccardo Fassi, Figaro

Giulia Semenzato, Susanna

Germán Enrique Alcántara, Count Almaviva

Federica Lombardi, Countess Almaviva

Hanna Hipp, Cherubino

Gianluca Buratto, Doctor Bartolo

Monica Bacelli, Marcellina

Alasdair Elliott, Don Curzio

Gregory Bonfatti, Don Basilio

Jeremy White, Antonio

Helen Withers, Barbarina

Peter Grimes drops anchor again at The Royal Opera

Christopher Woodley, 5th May

Allan Clayton and Sir Bryn Terfel lead a strong cast in a revival of Deborah Warner's dark staging of Britten's signature work at Covent Garden.

****1

Two funerals and a bedding at the Linbury Theatre

Eleanor Knight, 1st May

Tales of love and loss as operas by Elena Langer, Charlotte Bray and Elizabeth Maconchy form a varied triple bill in this showcase for The Royal Opera’s Jette Parker Artists.

****1

The Turn of the Screw at RBO Linbury: Darkness and denial

Eleanor Knight, 26th March

Natalie Abrahami’s mesmerising new production of Britten’s ghostly tale of sexual abuse is very dark indeed.

*****

A riveting Rigoletto revival at the Royal Opera House

Dominic Lowe, 25th March

Sir Mark Elder celebrates 50 years at Covent Garden by returning to his first opera there in 1976 – Verdi's Rigoletto – in a revival of Oliver Mears' excellent 2021 production.

****1

Siegfried at the RBO: Kosky and Pappano surprise and delight

David Karlin, 17th March

A revelatory orchestral performance and a cast led by Andreas Schager, Christopher Maltman and Elisabeth Strid make this a Siegfried for the record books.

*****

Terfel’s craggy Boris Godunov returns to Covent Garden

Mark Pullinger, 29th January

The second revival of Richard Jones' staging of Mussorgsky's original 1869 version of Boris Godunov once again stars the Welsh knight.

****1

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Roy Westbrook

Roy Westbrook gained a diploma in music history at London University (Morley College) and was for some years the head of music day schools at Oxford University, where he also led music summer schools. After some years leading the University's business school he has returned to music teaching and writing, and recently took part in the Arts in Residence courses on Bruckner, Mahler and Bach He is co-author (with Terry Barfoot) of a history of opera, and has taught day schools on Sibelius in Oxford and elsewhere.