La rondine: a flimsy work in pastel colours in Florence

Ekaterina Bakanova (Magda)

Ekaterina Bakanova (Magda) and Matteo Desole (Ruggero)

Marta Pluda, Ekaterina Bakanova, Giada Frasconi and Francesca Longari

By Renato Verga, 23 October 2017

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Reviewed at Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Florence on 22 October 2017

Puccini, La rondine

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Valerio Galli, Conductor

Denis Krief, Director, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Ekaterina Bakanova, Magda

Matteo Desole, Ruggero

Hasmik Torosyan, Lisette

Matteo Mezzaro, Prunier

Stefano Antonucci, Rambaldo

Marta Pluda, Bianca

Giada Frasconi, Suzy

Francesca Longari, Yvette

Dario Shikhmiri, Périchaud

Rim Park, Gobin

Adriano Gramigni, Crébillon

Giovanni Mazzei, A butler

Coro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

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Despite the Maggio Musicale stage being dominated by clerical garb and daring papal parallels, the true revelation is Jessica Pratt's breathtaking role debut as Lucrezia.

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Maggio Musicale Fiorentino's Don Giovanni falls at the final hurdle

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**111

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Five highly dissatisfied lead characters find only disastrous or ambiguous outcomes. Yet there are few greater operas than this.

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David Larkin, 14th September

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****1

Juan Diego Flórez charms as Roméo in Florence

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***11

Linda di Chamounix a bittersweet tale at the Maggio Musicale

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***11

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Renato Verga

Renato graduated from Turin University in Physics. He has always had a particular passion for music and the stage. A former member of a choir, he was raised in the musical milieu influenced by the eminent Italian musicologist Massimo Mila. In 2014, Renato started his own blog, which now has 1000 posts.