{"product_id":"monteverdi-lincoronazione-di-poppea-1","title":"Monteverdi: L'incoronazione di Poppea","description":"\u003ca class=\"links\" href=\"album.jsp?album_id=733559\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlso available on Blu-ray\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Claudio Monteverdi\u003cbr\u003e  L’INCORONAZIONE DI POPPEA\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Poppea – Miah Persson\u003cbr\u003e  Nerone – Sarah Connolly\u003cbr\u003e  Ottone – Jordi Domènech\u003cbr\u003e  Seneca – Franz-Josef Selig\u003cbr\u003e  Ottavia – Maite Beaumont\u003cbr\u003e  Drusilla – Ruth Rosique\u003cbr\u003e  Arnalta \/ Ottavia’s Nurse – Dominique Visse\u003cbr\u003e  Lucan – Guy de Mey\u003cbr\u003e  Valletto – William Berger\u003cbr\u003e  Damigella \/ Virtue – Judith van Wanroij\u003cbr\u003e  Liberto – Francisco Vas\u003cbr\u003e  Lictor – Josep Miquel Ramón\u003cbr\u003e  Fortune \/ Pallas Athene \/ Venus – Marisa Martins\u003cbr\u003e  Cupid – Olatz Saitua Iribar\u003cbr\u003e  Mercury – Josep Miquel Ramón\u003cbr\u003e  Praetorian soldiers – Guy de Mey \/ Francisco Vas\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Baroque Orchestra of the Gran Teatre del Liceu\u003cbr\u003e  Harry Bicket, conductor\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  David Alden, stage director\u003cbr\u003e  Paul Steinberg, set designer\u003cbr\u003e  Buki Shiff, costume designer\u003cbr\u003e  Pat Collins, lighting designer \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Recorded live at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, February 2009 \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Bonus:\u003cbr\u003e  - Illustrated Synopsis\u003cbr\u003e  - Cast Gallery \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Picture format: NTSC 16:9 anamorphic\u003cbr\u003e  Sound format: Dolby Digital 2.0 \u0026amp; 5.1\u003cbr\u003e  Region code: 0 (worldwide)\u003cbr\u003e  Subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Catalan\u003cbr\u003e  Running time: 183 mins\u003cbr\u003e  No. of DVDs: 1\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  R E V I E W:\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \"It is interesting that in the recent history of opera, works from the 17th and 18th centuries have become familiar fare, and it is difficult to believe that this is the first time that L' Incoronazione di Poppea has been presented at the Liceu, 366 years after its premiere in Venice.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  For this, its first production of a Monteverdi opera, the Liceu has chosen one of the most interesting stage directors of the present day, particularly in the baroque repertoire. I am referring to David Alden, whose works were presented so frequently in Munich during the time of Sir Peter Jonas.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  This production is not a new work, since it was premiered in Cardiff in 1997, has been revived on numerous occasions in Munich and has also been seen at the Palais Garnier in Paris. David Alden knows how to play with the sensuality and the humour of the opera, and directs actors magnificently. With imagination, spectacular lighting and careful direction, Alden was able to present Poppea’s scenes with an outstanding sensuality and eroticism. The costumes are very bright and colourful, emphasizing the figure of Poppea, making her into a real movie star. The production could have seemed iconoclastic, but in my opinion was not.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  The magnificent libretto of Gian Francesco Busenello (combined with the music of Monteverdi) gives us several comic roles (the Nurse, Arnalta, Drusilla, Valletto and the Damigella) and Alden emphasises the humour of all of them. More debatable is Alden’s interpretation of the three Goddesses, especially Amor, as belonging to the comic cast. However, in other ways Alden is very respectful towards the music and there is no sign of provocation in his treatment of the great arias for Ottavia nor in the duets of Poppea and Nero.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Harry Bicket was in charge of the musical direction. He is a specialist in this type of music and he gave a good performance, particularly in the more intimate passages. He gave very good support to the singers, although the intensity was not always at the same level, and lacked a little spark in the comic pages. The reduced Liceu’s Baroque Orchestra, gave a good performance under his direction. The large cast demanded by this opera worked very well, without low points and with some extraordinary contributions.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  It is difficult to imagine a more credible and convincing Poppea than the Swedish soprano Miah Persson. Her beauty, outstanding figure, her acting abilities and her beautiful voice, together with her great expressiveness, make her the Poppea of one’s dreams. It did not seem at all strange to me that Nero fell in love with her. After offering a splendid performance, she was wonderful in the final duet “Pur ti miro, pur ti godo”, a page that it is not Monteverdi’s.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  This was one of the best performances I have seen from [Sarah Connolly], as she was very credible on stage and sang wonderfully, and was an outstanding Nero.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Maite Beaumont was a magnificent Ottavia, difficult to surpass. She sang her two great scenes, the sorrowful “Disprezzata Regina” and “Addio, Rome” in a spectacular way. Ms Beaumont is another singer who is outstanding in this repertoire, which is very well adapted to her vocal characteristics.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Drusilla, Poppea’s servant (or her friend in this production) was interpreted by Ruth Rosique, who was quite good. Her voice is well suited to the role and she is also a good actress.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  Franz-Josef Selig brought nobility and the necessary stoicism to Séneca, singing the part with a voice very well suited to the character. Countertenor Dominique Visse doubled as the Nurse and Arnalta and was a superb comedian...his stage presence was wonderful.\"\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  -- José M. Irurzun, MusicWeb International \u003cbr\u003e   \u003ci\u003eReviewing live performance of this production\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Opus Arte","offers":[{"title":"DVD","offer_id":49608084586776,"sku":"809478010739","price":34.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0687\/4346\/3192\/files\/1987301.jpg?v=1777684274","url":"https:\/\/hbdirect.com\/products\/monteverdi-lincoronazione-di-poppea-1","provider":"HBDirect","version":"1.0","type":"link"}