Utterly bewitching Rusalka at Garsington Opera

Natalya Romaniw (Rusalka) and Musa Ngqungwana (Vodník)

Natalya Romaniw (Rusalka)

Rusalka

Natalya Romaniw (Rusalka) and Gerard Schneider (Prince)

Natalya Romaniw (Rusalka), Gerard Schneider (Prince), Sky Ingram (Foreign Princess) and Chorus

Christine Rice (Ježibaba)

By Dominic Lowe, 20 June 2022

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“Garsington’s Rusalka is the pinnacle of what opera can and should be”

Reviewed at Garsington Opera, High Wycombe on 18 June 2022

Dvořák, Rusalka

Garsington Opera

Douglas Boyd, Conductor

Jack Furness, Director

Tom Piper, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Malcolm Rippeth, Lighting Designer

Philharmonia Orchestra

Garsington Opera Chorus

Natalya Romaniw, Rusalka

Gerard Schneider, Prince

Musa Ngqungwana, Vodník, the water goblin

Christine Rice, Ježibaba, the Witch

Sky Ingram, Foreign Princess

Marlena Devoe, First Wood Sprite

Heather Lowe, Second Wood Sprite

Stephanie Wake-Edwards, Third Wood Sprite

Grace Durham, Kitchen Boy

John Findon, Gamekeeper

Mark Nathan, The Hunter

Fleur Darkin, Choreography

Lina Johansson, Choreography

A radically trad Fidelio at Garsington

Peter Quantrill, 27th June

Simple solutions prove the best in Beethoven's "problem" opera as John Cox's staging is revived at Garsington.

****1

Ravishing Rodelinda: Handel al fresco at Garsington Opera

Roy Westbrook, 13th June

Ruth Knight untangles Handel's Rodelinda, directing a new staging at Garsington which features a feast of fine singing.

****1

Three card trick: compelling new Queen of Spades at Garsington

Roy Westbrook, 29th May

Jack Furness directs a terrific new Queen of Spades at Garsington – haunting and harrowing.

****1

Garsington’s L’elisir d’amore: Dr Feelgood wins the day

David Karlin, 28th May

Simon Higlett’s exquisite sets and costumes give a backdrop to Donizetti’s frothiest of rom-coms.

****1

Madcap comedy from Verdi: Un giorno di regno at Garsington

David Karlin, 29th June

Christopher Alden, Chris Hopkins and an excellent cast send us a comic roller coaster ride with Verdi’s ultra-rarely performed second opera.

*****

Garsington Opera's new A Midsummer Night's Dream

Roy Westbrook, 16th June

In the first and last acts, ladies entered with a train still attached to a bolt of cloth, which was then cut to length by an attendant. Was this production brought to the stage in a great hurry, allowing no time for costume fittings?

***11

More reviews...

Dominic Lowe

Dominic Lowe recently completed a degree in Classics, and one of his great interests is the reception of Greece and Rome in opera. A regular opera-goer since his very early teens, he is particularly keen on the hidden operatic gems of the 19th century. He is largely based in the South of England.