Opéra Royal Versailles 2023 Review: Armide

I’m always struck by the story of “Armide.” The drama of the ancient sorceress is simultaneously transcendent and humane. The opera, after Torquato Tasso’s “Jerusalem Delivered,” ponders the prickly relationship between affect and politics, leading to the one-million-dollar question: Is his love enough? Or, even better: Is love enough? Philippe Quinault’s libretto contraposes the idea of freedom with lovelessness. Renaud’s {…}