Opera review: L'Italiana in Algeri at Garsington Opera

3 / 5 stars
L'Italiana in Algeri

OF ALL Rossini's comic operas, many of which have hilariously ridiculous plots, L'Italiana in Algeri is perhaps the silliest.

L'Italiana in AlgeriJOHAN PERSSON

L'Italiana in Algeri is perhaps the silliest of Rossini's comic operas

Mustafa, the Bey (whatever that is) of Algiers has a nasty habit of abducting Italians from shipwrecks and installing them as slaves in his palace.

He also has a nasty attitude towards his wife Elvira who he feels lacks the allure of Italian women.

Enter Isabella who is Italian, so Mustafa becomes besotted with her and orders his favourite slave to take her off to Italy so that he can be rid of her.

But his favourite slave happens to be Lindoro, who is Isabella's lost lover, and Isabella is the sort of spunky girl who will stand for no nonsense from Mustafa, which sets the scene for a great deal of fun.

With a set that is somewhere between a flying carpet and an Arab palace to add to the confusion, the production has good potential, but somehow it is a magic carpet that does not quite take off.

Ezgi Kutlu (Isabella) and Luciano Botelho (Lindoro) giving good comic performances and Mary Bevan in the smaller role of Elvira sings and acts beautifully as always, but the most important part of all is that of Mustafa and the Dutch baritone Quirijn de Lang did not seem quite right for the role.

Opera castJOHAN PERSSON

Somehow, the whole thing was not as funny as it ought to have been

Casting a baritone in a a role that really needs the deeper voice  of bass-baritone or bass may have been intended to add to the comic effect, but it didn't quite work.

Somehow, the whole thing was not as funny as it ought to have been. 

Tickets: 01865 361636 or booking.garsingtonopera.org 

Eugene Onegin will be showing until July 7; L'Italiana in Algeri until July 10. 

Mozart's opera Idomineo and Haydn's oratorio The Creation will also form part of this year's programme (garsingtonopera.org for details).

Eugene Onegin will be broadcast free from Garsington opera on huge screens in Skegness, Ramsgate, Burnham-on-sea and Grimsby on various dates in July and August. See  www.operaforall.org for times and details.

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