A long, strange trip: Opera Philadelphia’s Il viaggio a Reims

Scott Conner (Lord Sidney)

Brenda Rae (Madama Cortese)

Emilie Kealani (Corinna) and Minghao Liu (Il Cavaliere Belfiore)

Katherine Beck (Melibea) and Alisdair Kent (Il Barone di Libenskof)

By Cameron Kelsall, 20 September 2025

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“a visual feast”

Reviewed at Academy of Music, Philadelphia on 19 September 2025

Rossini, Il viaggio a Reims

Opera Philadelphia

Corrado Rovaris, Conductor

Damiano Michieletto, Director

Paolo Fantin, Set Designer

Carla Teti, Costume Designer

Opera Philadelphia Orchestra

Opera Philadelphia Chorus

Eleonora Gravagnola, Revival Director

Emilie Kealani, Corinna

Katherine Beck, Marchesa Melibea

Lindsey Reynolds, Contessa di Folleville

Brenda Rae, Madame Cortese

Minghao Liu, Chevalier Belfiore

Alasdair Kent, Conte di Libenskof

Scott Conner, Lord Sidney

Daniel Belcher, Barone di Trombonok

Alex DeSocio, Don Alvaro

Ben Brady, Don Profondo

Anthony Reed, Don Prudenzio

Zachary Altman, Don Prudenzio

Maya Mor Mitrani, Modestina

Fran Daniel Laucerica, Don Luigino

Sarah Scofield, Maddalena

Brandon Bell, Antonio

Olivia Prendergast, Delia

Hongrui Ren, Gelsomino, Zefirino

A sorta fairy tale: Sleepers Awake premieres at Opera Philadelphia

Cameron Kelsall, 22nd April

A new opera by Gregory Spears subverts the Sleeping Beauty trope, with middling results.

**111

Opera by committee: Opera Philadelphia premieres Complications in Sue

Cameron Kelsall, 4th February

Opera Philadelphia commissions ten composers to tell the story of an ordinary woman's idiosyncratic march from cradle to tomb.

****1

A didactic Decameron: The Seasons at Opera Philadelphia

Cameron Kelsall, 20th December

Conceived by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Sarah Ruhl, this high-handed pasticcio sets the climate crisis to a soundtrack of Vivaldi.

***11

The Listeners: daring psychological thriller at Opera Philadelphia

Cameron Kelsall, 25th September

The new opera by Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek draws on cult mindsets and conspiracy theories but smartly avoids sensationalism.

****1

Opera Philadelphia's Unholy Wars creates a dialogue with Monteverdi

Cameron Kelsall, 23rd September

Arab-American tenor Karim Sulayman devises a thoughtful pastiche that centers the perspective omitted from Early Modern depictions of the Middle East in music.

****1

Quinn Kelsey triumphs in Opera Philadelphia's Simon Boccanegra

Cameron Kelsall, 22nd September

In his role debut as the Genoan Doge, the American baritone continues to burnish his bona fides as the premier Verdi baritone of his generation.

****1

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Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall is a classical music critic and cultural reporter. He has written for Bachtrack since 2019, and his byline has appeared in many national and international classical music publications. Based in Philadelphia, he regularly travels around the United States for musical events. In addition to his career in journalism, Cameron also teaches in the Theatre Arts program at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also a certified sommelier and avid home cook. His favorite composer is Mahler. Twitter: @CameronPKelsall.