https://youtu.be/wgzyPG68UFA Based on the work of William Shakespeare Musical Direction by Dominic Hill Conduction by Stuart Stratford ★★★★★ Shakespearean Opera – it’s a nightmare of a concoction, merging two gigantic forms of artistic expression, running the risk of overwrought emotion or needless complexity. More often than not, the scroll of failures outweighs the pleasant experiences. … Continue reading Scottish Opera: A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Festival Theatre
https://youtu.be/BcS1Z1Uh4-s Directed by Stuart Maunder Conducted by Derek Clark and Jonathon Cole-Swinard ★★★★ With tremendous beliefs comes temptation, and when one of two happy-go-lucky Gondoliers is revealed to be the rightful inheritor of a distant kingdom, their Republican ideals are put to the test. Not for greed or glory, but to revolutionise the archaic rule … Continue reading The Gondoliers – Festival Theatre
https://youtu.be/HYcx9lFa3jE Directed by Jeanne Pansard-Besson Music Director & Piano by Fiona MacSherry ★★★★ Stripped back, raw and accessible, Scottish Opera returns with a Highlights season after a two-year gap. This Autumn outing tour across multiple Scottish locations feels like a return to the roots of the industry, playing smaller venues and cutting to the heart … Continue reading Scottish Opera: Highlights – Byre Theatre
Conducted by Stuart Stratford Libretto by Giuseppe Verdi ★★★★ Giuseppe Verdi’s final opera Falstaff emphasises the comedic aspects of the mistaken identities, love triangles and caddish rogues who litter history. Adapted from Shakespeare's Merry Wives of Windsor, the opera follows Sir John Falstaff, as plump as he is lustful, as he attempts to keep his dwindling reputation as a … Continue reading Falstaff – Edinburgh International Festival
Conducted by Lothar Koenig Accompanied by The Royal Scottish National Orchestra Adapted from Richard Strauss's 1916 Version ★★★★★ The concept of a comedic opera is far from a unique creation, nor is the sort of ballet featuring humorous segments or narrative. However, infusing the two together is refreshingly dynamic in Richard Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, which sees … Continue reading Ariadne auf Naxos – Edinburgh International Festival
Directed by Frederic Wake-Walker Conducted by John Butt Libretto by Errollyn Wallen ★★★ Billing itself as a sequel of sorts, Errollyn Wallen’s new libretto Dido’s Ghost not only begins where Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas concludes, but also seeks to entwine the two. In doing so, it offers a performance of the original that is intermittently stitched into the new production. Through flashback and … Continue reading Dido’s Ghost – Edinburgh International Festival
Starting with one heck of a sweet tooth, and a hand-full of classical fairy-tale magic, Scottish Opera launch into the 2021 season with their latest On-Screen production. Filmed at Glasgow's Theatre Royal in December of last year, Engelbert Humperdinck's Hansel & Gretel will be available to stream from 6pm on February 10th from the Scottish opera website … Continue reading Scottish Opera presents Humperdinck’s Hansel & Gretel – Preview
Music & Libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti Directed by Daisy Evans ★★★★ There’s a reason we’re asked to turn off our phones before a live performance, and The Telephone shows us precisely why. Filmed under lockdown conditions at the King’s Theatre in Edinburgh, Scottish Opera presents a contemporary take on Gian Carlo Menotti’s 1947 piece. Reminding us all of the company’s innovative potential, … Continue reading My Light Shines On – The Telephone
https://youtu.be/Cd61xDR4a74 Libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré Score by Charles Gounod ★★★★ Navigating the human condition, to the eventual judgements of heaven’s light and hell’s fire, Faust holds no prisoners in its sumptuously decadent retelling of the infamous man who sold his soul for wealth, power, and vitally in this iteration, a woman. The Royal Opera … Continue reading Faust – Royal Opera House
https://youtu.be/tu5CBJrEwnE Music: Giacomo Puccini Libretto: Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica Director: Richard Jones ★★★ A painter, a scholar, a musician, and a poet convene in their ramshackle abode – late on rent, low on funds, but bountiful in spirit(s). Giacomo Puccini’s La bohème is one of the artform’s most regularly performed pieces, and a staple of Italian … Continue reading La bohème – The Royal Opera House
