(Photo: ©OMC Marco Borrelli) A Parisian critic during the belle époque once wrote about the Opéra de Monte-Carlo: “If only the Paris Opera could assemble for one special performance a cast equivalent to the one that the inhabitants of the little earthly paradise on the Mediterranean will be able to applaud all winter long!” (La Renaissance musicale, October 8, 1881) {…}
(Photo: Amati Bacciardi) After the initial success of its premiere in 1819 at Teatro La Scala, Rossini’s “Bianca e Falliero” managed to hold its place on Italian stages and beyond for over 10 years before disappearing completely. It was not until 1986 that its first revival in modern times took place, thanks to the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro. The {…}
(Photo: Khalid Al-Busaidi) On October 14th, 2011, the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) opened its doors for its inaugural season with a production of Puccini’s “Turandot,” with the aim of establishing itself as a “centre of excellence in global cultural engagement.” It is a noble and ambitious aim, for sure, but for a country without a tradition of opera, it {…}