Work: La vida breve

In the climax of the season at Bridgewater Hall, the BBC Philharmonic bid a fond farewell to Juanjo Mena in an evening that blew off your sombrero. 

Manuel de Falla’s rarely performed La Vida Breve and Giacomo Puccini’s comic Gianni Schicchi are quite contrasting mini-operas, united by common threads of deception and the clash of class distinction.

Tragedy giving way to comedy – a recipe which still works, as demonstrated in Opera North's fine double bill of Gianni Schicchi and La vida breve.