Sunday, September 13

Tag: Stephen Costello

Verdi’s A Masked Ball – Festival Theatre
Scotland

Verdi’s A Masked Ball – Festival Theatre

As the Edinburgh International Festival draws to a close, Zurich Opera has their final performance of Verdi’s A Masked Ball at the Festival Theatre.  Based on preexisting libretto, Giuseppe Verdi adapted and added the love triangle aspect we see in this production.  Given the assassination in the opera (originally written as the murder of a King) Verdi had to combat numerous censorship attempts.  Despite several setting changes, with Verdi eventually settling on 17th century Boston as the location, each adaptation was followed by real-life assassination attempts and political unrest which called for Verdi to keep adjusting details of the opera so it would seem a little less close to reality. Director Adele Thomas has kept the Boston setting but moved the timeline sligh...
La Traviata (2022) – Royal Opera House
North West

La Traviata (2022) – Royal Opera House

Director Bárbara Lluch’s current revival of Richard Eyre’s 1994 production delivers a truly musical feast that not only embraces and relishes its traditional 19th Century roots but whose theme continues to resonate strongly today. At its heart lies a love story which draws upon Alexandre Dumas the Younger’s real-life doomed love affair with well-known courtesan, Marie Duplessis. We open with Violetta (Pretty Yende) aided by her friend Flora (Angela Simkin) hosting a lavish party where she is introduced by Gastone (Andrés Presno) to his friend, Alfredo Germont (Stephen Costello), a fervent admirer, who is more concerned for her failing health than her escort, Baron Douphal (Germán E. Alcántara). When Alfredo declares his love for her she wonders if he could be the one amidst her desire t...