The original French version of Verdi's opera. Conducted by Antonio Pappano. Directed for video by Yves Andre Hubert. Read more
| Starring | Roberto Alagna, Thomas Hampson, Karita Mattila, Jose Van Dam |
|---|---|
| Director | Luc Bondy |
| Genres | Music/Musical, World Cinema |
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The original French version of Verdi's opera. Conducted by Antonio Pappano. Directed for video by Yves Andre Hubert.
| Starring | Roberto Alagna, Thomas Hampson, Karita Mattila, Jose Van Dam, Waltraud Meier, Paris Orchestra, Choeur Du Theatre Du Chatelet |
|---|---|
| Director | Luc Bondy |
| Studio | WARNER MUSIC VISION |
| Run time | DVD: 3 hrs 31 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Music/Musical, World Cinema |
| Language | DVD: French |
| Subtitles | DVD: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish |
| Released | DVD: 20 Nov 2000 Production year: 1996 |
| Format | DVD |
Opera buffs will know about the glowing review the CD set has in the Penguin Guide and will need no urging to see this. Newcomers to opera may be put off by the few already-familiar tunes, but if you are ready to go beyond the very popular repertoire do give this a try. The singing is consistently fine, especially the lead soprano,the acting is good, the dramatic tension gripping, the stage lighting has a Rembrandt quality. I'll be back to borrow this again in a moth or two.
To my mind, opera should be centred on a recognizable historical figure or incidence with a simple story full of love-struck maidens singing their hearts out and cuckolded husbands swearing revenge on the perpetrators. The more simple the story the more scope the composer has to tailor his music to the characters and here Verdi enjoyed this to the full. The music suited Don Carlos and his father (and his stepmother) perfectly and the solos and arias were wonderful. I kept the disc and watched it again the next night and I can thoroughly recommend this course of action to anyone who chooses this piece.