Fate as ritual: Enescu’s Œdipe at the Bucharest National Opera

Œdipe

By Edward Sava-Segal, 16 September 2025

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“a symbolic framework that seeks to unify the opera’s four sprawling acts”

Reviewed at Bucharest National Opera House, Bucharest on 15 September 2025

Enescu, Œdipe

Bucharest National Opera

Tiberiu Soare, Conductor

Mircea Padurariu, Conductor

Stefano Poda, Director, Set Designer, Costume Designer, Lighting Designer, Choreography

Bucharest National Opera Orchestra

Bucharest National Opera Choir

Paolo Giani, Associated Director

Paula Stoica, Assistant Director

Claudia Machedon, Assistant Director

Ionut Pascu, Œdipe

Ruxandra Donose, Jocaste

Ramona Zaharia, La Sphinge (The Sphinx)

Vazgen Gazaryan, High Priest

Paul Curievici, Laios

Adrian Sâmpetrean, Créon

Kaarin Cecilia Phelps, Antigone

Alexei Botnarciuc, Tirésias

Zoica Șohterus, Theban woman

Andreea Iftimescu, Mérope

Daniel Filipescu, Thésée

Bucharest National Opera Children's Choir

Adrian Ionescu, Choirmaster / chorus director

Daniel Jinga, Choirmaster / chorus director

Smaranda Morgovan, Choirmaster / chorus director

Silvia Sisto, Choreography Assistant

Monica Petrica, Ballet Coordinator

Antonel Oprescu, Ballet Coordinator

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A strong cast and an inspiring production deliver the latest opera staged at the Rossini Opera Festival.

****1

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Renato Verga, 16th January

Stefano Poda's staging has its own coherence, but it is as cold as the Chinese princess.

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Emmanuel Gaillard, 26th September

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*****

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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.