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Adriana Lecouvreur at the Royal Opera

It was nearly a century ago when the Royal Opera staged Adriana Lecouvreur, so that's no surprise that I hadn't seen it before. Angela Gheorghiu was ill and pulled out of her performance (no surprise) so I had the delight of hearing  Ángeles Blancas Gulín for the first time. Her voice and presence really suited the title role. Her top notes were slightly on the wobbly side (nerve may be) but otherwise she was superb singing opposite Jonas Kaufmann as Maurizio who gave his very best both in acting and voice. Michaela Schuster was also superlative in the bitchy role of Princess of Bouillon.



The stage design was subpstuous, of the period and intricate - no expense spared given it's going to be shared by FOUR opera houses. Signs of the time I am afraid. David McVicar's direction was also marvellous. Nothing OTT, but just enough to effectively create the right dynamics between the characters.

Mark Elder was superlative at bringing the score to life, always keeping the orchestra balanced with the singers on stage.


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