Dido and Aeneas

[kaergaard]

There is this singing actor Christopher Maltman and there is this new label ƒ Arte – some places listed as F ArMusica - , two valid reasons to buy a DVD of a Purcell opera, namely Dido and Aeneas.  I remembered another performance of this opera with Susan Graham as Dido, whose acting talent extended to  stretching out the left arm, and after a few bars, stretching out the other arm, repeatedly, nothing memorable indeed. Yes, she sings prettily too.

But there is the film of the 2008 performance at the Opéra Comique, conducted by William Christie and directed by Deborah Warner, two talents combined to produce an impressive new format of this Arcadian work.

http://www.amazon.com/Purcell-Dido-Aeneas-Malena-Emman/dp/B002QXI2N6/ref=sr_1_5?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1299605588&sr=1-5

ƒRA Musica is a fairly new label, connected to the Opéra Comique, and I am shamelessly advertising this label here, where I believe, ads are the territory of our beloved Master. Just the cover of this DVD is the most beautiful and different one I have seen in my many years of collecting discs – Hyperion CDs excepted! – and  the sound and video so very kind to the performers and audience alike. Malena  Ernman is stunning, acting, singing and stage presence, partnered of course in his usual charming and seductive acting and singing the few minutes Purcell gives Aeneas to the male role. Period costumes are the works of gifted designers and artisans.

The supplement to the issue is an almost half hour of interesting interviews with Christie and Warner.  Warner's prologue to the opera is a collection of poems by Ted Hughes, Thomas Sterns Eliot and William Butler Yeats, delivered perfectly by the actress Fiona Shaw.  There is so much more beauty and surprises to this production, believe me, it's a pleasure to watch it!

[knight66]

No one but you Lis would put Aneas forward as a prime reason to buy this piece. His contribution is over in a trice. I do know your weakness for barihunks.

Quite expensive in bang for bucks terms.

Mike

[Drasko]

I have the DVD and liked very much the production and thought singing and acting were quite good, but I have next to nothing previous experience with the piece. There are lot of clips from it on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maWN0mZCpDI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83lCAnrWLNg

[kaergaard]

No one but you Lis would put Aneas forward as a prime reason to buy this piece. His contribution is over in a trice. I do know your weakness for barihunks.

Quite expensive in bang for bucks terms.

Mike

Five minutes of a barihunk is always worth more to me than thirty minutes of a lardbucket! 

[zamyrabyrd]

Five minutes of a barihunk is always worth more to me than thirty minutes of a lardbucket! 

[Mandryka]

I like this opera.

There's a very entertaining regitheatre thing -- a sort of dance production, here:

[asin]B001AE4PB0[/asin]

I like it -- but I like that sort of think. I'm a fan of Pina Bausch and Katie Mitchell.

If you're brave,  there's a DVD with Jon Vickers here:

http://store.operapassion.com/dvd526.html