Musical statues: Ronconi's static Semiramide

By Mark Pullinger, 30 September 2016

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“Silvia Tro Santafé... a terrific Arsace, a mezzo with a distinctive balsamic tang”

Reviewed at Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Florence on 29 September 2016

Rossini, Semiramide

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Antony Walker, Conductor

Luca Ronconi, Director

Tiziano Santi, Set Designer

Emanuel Ungaro, Costume Designer

Jessica Pratt, Semiramide

Silvia Tro Santafé, Arsace

Mirco Palazzi, Assur

Juan Francisco Gatell, Idreno

Andrea Giovannini, Mitrane

Oleg Tsybulko, Oroe

Tonia Langella, Azema

Chanyoung Lee, Nino's ghost

Marina Bianchi, Revival Director

Marie Lambert-Le Bihan, Revival Director

Coro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Jessica Pratt triumphs in a new Lucrezia Borgia in Florence

Laura Servidei, 9th November

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.

****1

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

Laura Servidei, 6th May

The Maggio postpones Pountney’s expected new production of Don Giovanni, presenting Ferrara’s production from Spoleto instead, with a good cast in the hands of Zubin Mehta.

**111

Florence's finest: Teatro del Maggio's compelling new Don Carlo

Roy Westbrook, 27th December

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

*****

A Florentine Comedy: a lively Barbiere di Siviglia in Tuscany

David Larkin, 14th September

A lively and amusing Barbiere at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, with Daniele Gatti expertly marshalling the talents of Ruzil Gatin, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Nicola Alaimo and Fabio Capitanucci in Damiano Michieletto's colourfully minimalist staging.

****1

Juan Diego Flórez charms as Roméo in Florence

Elena Luporini, 3rd May

For the 84th edition of its summer festival, the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino presents its first ever production of Gounod's Roméo et Juliette.

***11

Linda di Chamounix a bittersweet tale at the Maggio Musicale

Laura Servidei, 3rd October

Jessica Pratt shines in this Donizetti coloratura role, with the support of Teresa Iervolino as a luxury Pierotto, and a solid cast of Italian singers.

***11

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Mark Pullinger

Mark has been a Bachtrack editor since 2014. He is also an experienced critic, writing hundreds of reviews for the site, as well as a freelancer writing for other magazines and newspapers. He also writes programme notes and blogs on Substack. Mark has a particular passion for the operas of Verdi as well as Russian and French repertoire. Outside the concert hall and opera house, Mark enjoys cooking and travel and is probably at his happiest let loose in a French patisserie or a Viennese coffee house.

Musical statues: Impressive singing in Ronconi's static Semiramide in Florence