Opera Holland Park

Sir John in Love review – young singers achieve excellence against the odds

The twee Vaughan Williams piece is a strange choice for a youth company – but BYO create an endlessly spirited performance

Flora Willson

25, Aug, 2022 @10:10 AM

The week in classical: Tredegar Band at the Proms; HMS Pinafore; Poulenc double bill – review

The Tredegar brass band wowed the Proms then were back in Wales in time for their day jobs. Plus, fizz and finesse in G&S and Poulenc

Fiona Maddocks

13, Aug, 2022 @11:30 AM

Little Women review – classic tale struggles for momentum on opera stage

Although conducted with energy by Sian Edwards and performed by a strong cast, Mark Adamo’s opera – here receiving its UK premiere – doesn’t fully cohere into a narrative reality

Martin Kettle

25, Jul, 2022 @11:47 AM

Margot la Rouge/Le Villi review – Puccini and Delius rarities create double bill with daddy issues

Puccini’s first opera proves heady and entertaining in Martin Lloyd-Evans’ staging; singing the lead role in this and Delius’s Margot La Rouge, Anne Sophie Duprels impresses alongside a strong supporting cast

Erica Jeal

22, Jul, 2022 @10:51 AM

Serse review – new ensemble bring circus, and scissors, to Handel’s Persian opera

Period instrument ensemble Figure’s semi-staging of an abridged version of Serse was full of good ideas and strong singing

Erica Jeal

01, Jul, 2022 @11:30 AM

The week in classical: Parsifal; Eugene Onegin; Scriabin: Poems of Ecstasy and Fire

Opera North’s new Wagner production is one to remember; OHP take on Tchaikovsky’s perfect opera; and Bold Tendencies go to town with Scriabin’s synaesthesia

Fiona Maddocks

11, Jun, 2022 @11:30 AM

Opera Holland Park's Carmen review – devil-woman clichés dispensed with as heroine radiates joy not lust

Kezia Bienek is a charismatic Carmen at the mercy of Don José’s obsessive control in Cecilia Stinton’s cogent and pacey new production

Erica Jeal

06, Jun, 2022 @11:49 AM

Eugene Onegin review – much love and passion to admire in uneven new staging

The two superb male leads – Samuel Dale Johnson and Thomas Atkins – bring charisma and insights to Tchaikovsky’s opera although Julia Burbach’s production feels wayward at times

Tim Ashley

01, Jun, 2022 @11:51 AM

The week in classical: BBC NOW/ Bancroft; The Pirates of Penzance; Tsoy, Philharmonia/ Emelyanychev

No diagram needed in a vibrant Proms premiere; the very model of a night of G&S; and a blazing Brahms marathon

Fiona Maddocks

14, Aug, 2021 @11:30 AM

L’Amico Fritz review – a lover’s dream on a summer’s night

Cafe society meets old-fashioned romance in this charming production of Mascagni’s opera, where Matteo Lippi makes a fine match in Katie Bird

Tim Ashley

18, Jul, 2021 @12:00 PM

The Cunning Little Vixen review – small scale but big impact for warm and witty staging

Janáček’s opera about the interconnectedness of humans and nature weaves its magic in Stephen Barlow’s new production, with Grant Doyle and Jennifer France both convincing leads

Erica Jeal

14, Jul, 2021 @1:25 PM