Erwin Schrott makes his Budapest debut as Don Giovanni

By Jonathan Sutherland, 07 December 2015

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Reviewed at Erkel Színház (Erkel Theatre), Budapest on 4 December 2015

Mozart, Don Giovanni

Hungarian State Opera

Gergely Kesselyák, Conductor

Gianfranco de Bosio, Director

Nanà Cecchi, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Erwin Schrott, Don Giovanni

Klára Kolonits, Donna Anna

Beatrix Fodor, Donna Elvira

Miklós Sebestyén, Leporello

Zita Szemere, Zerlina

Istvan Horvath, Don Ottavio

Géza Gábor, The Commendatore

Csaba Sándor, Masetto

Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra

Hungarian State Opera Chorus

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Hungarian National Ballet's La Bayadère revitalizes tradition with a new reconstruction of its forgotten final act.

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Hungarian State Opera's cut-down, dramatically inert Gioconda fails to ignite the stage in Budapest, despite a solid musical foundation.

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Martin Rajna's energetic conducting and Gabriella Balga's glorious Elisabetta are the bright spots in this flashy but empty house premiere of Donizetti's classic.

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Hungarian National Ballet: a tremendously witty Merry Widow

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Hungarian National Ballet strike a delightful balance between lighthearted comedy and technical assurance in Ronald Hynd's The Merry Widow.

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A promising class: 6th Éva Marton Competition grand final

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In its tenth year and going strong, the biennial Éva Marton International Singing Competition fields an even level of talent in an entertaining finale.

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Jonathan Sutherland

Jonathan Sutherland is a graduate of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and the Hochschule Mozarteum in Salzburg. He is also an internationally renowned concert pianist specializing in the music of the 1930s. Jonathan’s first operatic experience was hearing Maria Callas sing Tosca in Covent Garden and he has since heard performances in all continents of the world including over 60 different productions at the Wiener Staatsoper. He has written for The Australian, Opera Today and The Opera Critic as well as Bachtrack. Jonathan speaks English, French, German and Italian fluently and is based in the south of France near Nice.