Richard Jones’ tacky Samson et Dalila fails to bring down the house

Bacchanale, Act 3

Elīna Garanča (Dalila)

Elīna Garanča (Dalila) and SeokJong Baek (Samson)

Samson et Dalila

Łukasz Goliński (High Priest) and Elīna Garanča (Dalila)

By Mark Pullinger, 27 May 2022

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“the Bacchanale was much more sultry and steamy in the pit than anything on the stage”

Reviewed at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 26 May 2022

Saint-Saëns, Samson et Dalila

The Royal Opera

Sir Antonio Pappano, Conductor

Richard Jones, Director

Hyemi Shin, Set Designer

Nicky Gillibrand, Costume Designer

Andreas Fuchs, Lighting Designer

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden

Royal Opera Chorus

SeokJong Baek, Samson

Elīna Garanča, Dalila

Łukasz Goliński, High Priest of Dagon

Blaise Malaba, Abimélech

Goderdzi Janelidze, The Old Hebrew

Alan Pingarrón, First Philistine

Chuma Sijeqa, Second Philistine

Thando Mjandana, Philistine Messenger

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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.

Richard Jones’ tacky Samson et Dalila fails to bring down the house at Covent Garden