Montreal double bill links world premiere to a 20th-century gem

By Edward Sava-Segal, 06 November 2020

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“Bellemare easily swayed between hope and despair, confidence and angst”

Reviewed at Théâtre Maisonneuve, Montreal on 5 November 2020

Poulenc, La Voix humaine

Jobidon, L’hiver attend beaucoup de moi

Opéra de Montréal

Solène Paré, Director

Étienne René-Contant, Set Designer

France Bellemare, Elle

Vanessa Croome, Léa

Florence Bourget, Madeleine

Esther Gonthier, Piano, Director

Jennifer Szeto, Piano, Director

Ophélie steals the show in Opéra de Montréal's Hamlet

Ian Cochrane, 16th November

Sarah Dufresne dazzles as Ophélie in Opéra de Montréal's Hamlet along with mezzo Karine Deshayes and the Orchestre Métropolitain conducted by Jacques Lacombe.

***11

New World opera triumphs in Montréal

Patricia Maunder, 21st May

Québec play of illicit love transformed into a memorable Opéra de Montréal world premiere.

*****

Montreal's Otello ticks the boxes

Patricia Maunder, 30th January

An impressive trio of international singers carry Opéra de Montréal's traditional new production of this Verdi tragedy.

****1

An electric Elektra in Montreal

Patricia Maunder, 21st November

Opéra de Montréal's belated première of Strauss' take on the Greek tragedy is worth the wait, as soprano Lise Lindstrom and wunderkind conductor Yannick Nézét-Séguin lead an exciting, music-driven production.

****1

Silent Night draws strength from its all-Canadian cast

Richard Turp, 16th May

Silent Night by Kevin Puts closes L'Opéra de Montréal's 2014-2015 season and is notable for revealing a formidable all-Canadian cast of principals.

***11

Marie-Nicole Lemieux dominates as Dalila

Richard Turp, 24th January

Marie-Nicole Lemieux tackles Saint-Saëns' Dalila for the first time and exceeds all expectations.

***11

More reviews...

Edward Sava-Segal

Edward has been living in New York for the last 25 years, one of the reasons being the extraordinarily rich cultural life in this city. He has studied piano and classical music in his early years. He switched later on to computer science and data architecture but he kept an unwavering interest in following the classical music phenomenon here in New York and in his travels. Edward occasionally reviews fine arts events for the most prestigious literary magazine in Romania, his home country.

Opéra de Montréal double bill links world premiere to a 20th-century gem