41 stories by "Inge Kjemtrup"
Some of the most beloved operas come freighted with the heaviest cultural baggage. Consider Madama Butterfly, Puccini's 1904 opera. Set in Nagasaki,
The boundless cruelty of a government that imprisons and tortures its opponents, the soul-destroying complicity of functionaries who uphold the state's brutality
This year marks the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci's death, and his life and works are being celebrated around the world
A stirring if fanciful epic poem about the First Crusade by Italian Renaissance poet Torquato Tasso has, for centuries, been a rich
Donizetti's comic opera classic receives an invigorating new English-language production at the King's Head Theatre, Islington. A co-production of King's Head and
In 1918, birth-control advocate Marie Stopes published Married Life, a book that ignited a firestorm of controversy for its daring premise that
The Picture of Dorian Gray has inspired many playwrights and composers to translate it to the stage. A new operatic adaptation by
An opera about a singing contest would seem an obvious candidate for a modern-era production and that's exactly what Fulham Opera has
English composer Stephen Storace was a contemporary and friend of Mozart, and his 1785 opera Gli Sposi Malcontenti contains all the essential
Political drama or romantic tragedy? Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera has elements of both with its plot about the assassination of the
To launch a new Ring cycle is an ambitious undertaking for any opera company. It's even more audacious when the company in
On the day of the European Union elections, to see Peter Sellars' staged version of an a cappella Renaissance choral work, Orlando
Richard Eyre's production of La Traviata is a mainstay of the Royal Opera House, and Bob Crowley's lavish design is one major
American composer Jake Heggie is best known for his opera Dead Man Walking. His predilection for turning to popular sources continues with
La Traviata is all about passion. Passion propels the opera's drama forward, from the moment the impulsive Violetta decides to abandon her
The feisty opera company at the King's Head Theatre, under the artistic direction of Adam Spreadbury-Maher, likes to drill down to the
From a feminist perspective, the character of Salome is seriously problematic. In Richard Strauss's opera, based on Oscar Wilde's play, she's a
"Since it is not by merit we rise or we fall, but the favour of Fortune that governs us all." That sounds
It's no wonder that Greek, Mark-Anthony Turnage's first opera, made the 28-year-old composer's name in 1988. Turnage's brilliant, percussive score took an
Had Rossini not composed Le Cenerentola in 1817, it's possible that the most famous operatic version of Perrault's fairytale Cendrillon would be
Hot on the heels of a well-received revival of Mascagni's forgotten Isabeau, Opera Holland Park chalks up its first Richard Strauss opera with a
Rossini's The Barber of Seville requires a fine balance between fast-paced slapstick and stand-and-deliver vocal showpieces, and an enjoyable new production from
English Touring Opera's revival production of Il Tabarro and Gianni Schicchi provides a reminder of the wide range of emotion Puccini crammed
The operas of John Adams " Nixon in China, Doctor Atomic and The Death of Klinghoffer among them " confront the American
The course of love never does run smooth and neither does the course of most fairytales. Random cruelty and stunning setbacks abound
