Intermezzo

Bryn is back (again) at Covent Garden

Terfel to the rescue! 

Bryn Terfel has stepped in to replace Sebastian Catana, who has withdrawn from Tosca at the Royal Opera House. He sings Scarpia on 16, 19 and 26 June, with Lucio Gallo taking over on 21 June.

There are still plenty of tickets left, including some cheap ones.

Tosca on the edge

Tosca - Royal Opera House, 6 March 2013

Maurizio Benini clearly knows his way round the score, but spoilt Covent Garden regulars will miss the detail, the variety and the sheer passion that Pappano brings to Tosca. What looked on paper like a routine revival of a warhorse production was instead elevated to the extraordinary by the powerful performances of its central cast.

ROH Tosca in full

Enjoy Sir Antonio Pappano and his crew while you may - I suspect it'll get pulled when the BBC recover from their NYE hangover.

Tosca on the box

There are more Nutcrackers than you can shake a sugar plum at, but the festive TV schedules are more parsimonious with their operatic offerings this season.

The one highlight is the Royal Opera House's recent all-star Tosca (Kaufmann, Terfel, Gheorghiu) which airs tomorrow, 24 December, on BBC2 at 2.35pm.

Preceding it at 1.35pm is a DVD extra-style documentary. Pappano's Essential Tosca isn't just a ponce around the historical locations, though inevitably there's quite a bit of that sort of thing. There's also rehearsal footage (Angela is surprisingly 100x more compelling in this than the real thing), a detailed look at how the bell sounds are produced, and an interview with the legendary Ennio Morricone. The programme also marks the first and I confidently predict only time a Music Director of the Royal Opera House says 'masturbatory' on daytime TV

The ROH website has a clip of the documentary's start (strangely, they miss a trick by not plugging the opera itself). The BBC have more clips - none of them featuring Jonas Kaufmann, in case you're wondering. In total you can watch nearly half the show online.

Both programmes will be on the iPlayer later.

Something for the kids

This is ENO's latest marketing wheeze. Presumably aimed at the under-5s, it's a game where you.....well,  hit the button above and see for yourself. Something with loads of stabbing and candlesticks might have been more fun though. Feel free to share your scores - I managed a miserable 5 first time round.

If you want to enter the competition, it might be safer to do it on ENO's own site.

Disclaimer - As the above is basically an advert, I assume ENO won't mind me reproducing it. I am happy to remove on request if not.

Vittoria! for Royal Opera House Tosca

Tosca - Royal Opera House, 17 July 2011

 

There was something missing from tonight's Tosca - the Maestro's vocal accompaniment. Has he bowed to public pressure and resolved to conduct in silence?