Diary of a Culture Hedonist

Tin Lung Heen is perched on the 102nd floor of this very tall tower, as part of the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Hong Kong. It's meant to cater for the very rich by offering them a truly luxurious experience from the moment they walk into the lobby. I went there when the 'hype' of a new top Chinese restaurant has subsided. It was a nice enough lunch with family. We took the executive lunch which offered a choice of BBQ black-foot pork, assorted dimsum and other seasonal dishes. Everything was tasty and comparable to other top Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. The disappointing part for me, however, was the service. Not that there was anything wrong with the service, but it just wasn't quite right. The staff were attentive, but lacking in warmth and smile. They were courteous, but short of making you feel welcome. They were efficient, but clinically so. All in all, I did not feel that quintessentially Chinese hospitality.

I had the most amazing afternoon. Went to an intimate viewing (I was one of six) of a Canaletto (still held in private hands) in a gorgeous monastery next to Salute, in a room where Canaletto had painted the painting. Complete with an armed security guard who explained to us the intricate details of the painting, and allowed us to be within touching distance. And at the end of the viewing, we had the pleasure of taking a cup of coffee or refreshing drink in a delightful salon. That was a "once in a lifetime" experience.

Meyerbeer's L’africaine is rarely staged. So it was a "must see" at La Fenice when I was in Venice. Well, the cast was pretty good: Zuzana Marková was Inés who had presence despite the somewhat minor role. Luca Grassi was a heroic Nélusko - and had the right look too. Vasco was sung by Antonello Palombi who could fill the auditorium with a booming tenorial voice, though it lacked finesse and tenderness: his version of O paradis was ok. Patrizia Biccirè was Sélika who was superb - especially in the last act. The staging and lighting was poor. Clearly the house didn't have money, but to have a few chairs in act 1, some box-standard prison gates in act 2, a bit of a ship in act 3, NOTHING for act 4 and just a plank and a tree for act 5 simply did not do the genre justice. Oh and there was no ballet. Everything was poorly lit - they even for got to light the lead soloist at the final curtain call! I thought it was an engaging opera. The music followed (a mature Mey...

I think Wozzeck is far too sophisticated for me. I have now seen it a couple of times, and have still found it hard to understand. One comes away feeling slightly empty (is that the intended effect?) Nonetheless, Karita Mattila was fab as Marie, and Simon Keenlyside was a very involved actor on stage. Rick Fisher's lighting was particularly atmospheric.

Poulenc's piano concertos are fun to watch and listen to. Last night, Alexandre Tharaud played his piano concerto with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. There was not question of his command of the keyboard - fingers gliding elegantly up and down, and always dancing with the orchestra (musically speaking). Yannick Nézet-Séguin ensured there was much harmony on stage and maintained a brisk tempo for this fun work. This was followed by Prokofiev Symphony No. 7 - a short work with rich colours and rhythmic brilliance. The concert concludes with Poulenc Stabat Mater (as I was on stage singing it).

I went to the first performance (ever) of Les Vêpres siciliennes at the Royal Opera: so there was much anticipation as you can imagine. As grand operas went, it was pretty grand. A tall and deep set (designed by Philipp Fürhofer) that made the Covent Garden stage even bigger. The proportions were generous. And there were enough mirrors and faux gilding to enhance the "grandness" of the set. Michael Volle as Guy de Montfort brought out the complex character and emotions of the character. Procida, sang by Erwin Schrott, was no less interesting - with his funny boots and dress, he was an effective antagonist. Lianna Haroutounian, who sang Helene, could have been better if she didn't have so many intonation problems. Bryan Hymel who sung Henri was superb: rich tone, believable emotions, and acting as well! Antonio Pappano, as ever, gave this score full justice - bringing out those tender and nuanced moments. And the chorus was superb too - singing with that big Ver...

Strauss's Die Fledermaus conjures up images of opulence, glitz, and champagne! Oh no, Christopher Alden's production of Die Fledermaus at the English National Opera only delivered one of these. The "idea" was to explore the contradiction, decadence and Freudian background of the work. The brain had to work very hard to try to understand what's going on stage - was there something to be "understood"? So opulence was replaced by austere wall papers and a dull stair case, glitz turned into omni-sexual high camp. There was champagne all right. The singing was fine. Tom Randle's von Eisenstein was credible. Julia Sporsén's Roaslinde had enough drama. Even Edgaras Montvidas had enough high camp in his tenorial rings to add a bit of humour. Andrew Shore's Frank was tolerably funny. Jan Pohl (as Frosch) was trying to be funny with his native German accent. I think this was a case of "trying too hard".