"Actor: Barbara Frittoli"

• Verdi - Falstaff / Graham Vick, Bernard Haitink, Royal Opera House | DVD | (10/10/2001) from £24.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The Graham Vicks production of Falstaff opened the new Covent Garden Royal Opera House, and was not to everybody's taste; the garish primary colours of the costumes, especially Falstaff's unusually hideous get-ups, go several steps beyond the Breughelian effect Vicks intended. The staging is effective--the complicated counterpoint of the ensembles is reflected in unobtrusive blocking that keeps the vocal lines clear and separate, especially in the final fugue. Bryn Terfel's Falstaff is a memorable creation, self-mocking and self-aggrandising at the same time--so much so, in fact, that he almost does not need the vast prosthetic body he has to wear for the part. Desiree Rancatore is an admirably sweet-toned Nanetta; Bernadette Manca di Nissa an appropriately sardonic Mistress Quickly; Roberto Frontali as Ford, in his Act 2 scena, perfectly distils and parodies every jealousy aria ever written, including Verdi's own. Haitink's conducting is exemplary in the lyrical passages, gets almost everything out of the fast and furious comic sections. --Roz Kaveney On the DVD: The Dolby Digital 5.1 sound is powerful and filled with detail, capturing the excitement of the performance and the atmosphere of the Royal Opera House superbly. The anamorphically enhanced 1.77:1 widesceen image is very clear, and while given the source inevitably not up to the highest feature film standards, is among the best live classical titles yet released on DVD. The bold colours are particularly well realised, though the red lighting of the Garter Inn scenes causes the image to falter a little. There are optional subtitles in English, French and German. These are presented directly over the picture and would be easier to read had they been a little larger, or outlined in some way. The special features consist of a brief synopsis by James Naughtie, taken directly from the original television broadcast, a minute-long "comment" by conductor Bernard Haitink and short but interesting interviews with Bryn Terfel and director Graham Vick. Finally there is a nine-minute episode from the series of short BBC films, Covent Garden Tales on the 1999 modernisation of the Royal Opera House. --Gary S Dalkin

• Verdi: Otello -- La Scala/Muti | DVD | (19/09/2003) from £9.98   |  Saving you £15.01 (150.40%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Riccardi Muti conducts a performance of Otello at the La Scala Theatre before the start of a three year renovation project.

• Falstaff - Giuseppe Verdi | DVD | (04/11/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The present recording was made at a performance in Busseto Verdi's birthplace in the Emilia Romagna region. There in 2001 a whole series of events marked the 100th anniversary of the composer's death. This Falstaff performance along with Aida staged by Franco Zeffirelli constituted the high point of the impressive anniversary celebrations. The small 328-seat Teatro Verdi built in Verdi's lifetime provided the ensemble of La Scala Milan under its principal conductor Riccardo Muti with a particularly captivating backdrop and the mainly young singers including 31-year-old shooting star Ambrogio Maestri in the title role exciting young tenor Juan Diego Florez as Fenton and internationally acclaimed Barbara Frittoli as Alice - gave superb performances.

• Verdi: Falstaff -- Royal Opera House | DVD | (20/11/2000) from £30.24   |  Saving you £-5.25 (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  This Graham Vicks production of Falstaff opened the new Covent Garden Royal Opera House, but was not to everybody's taste; the garish primary colours of the costumes, especially Falstaff's unusually hideous get-ups, go several steps beyond the Breughelian effect Vicks intended. The staging is effective--the complicated counterpoint of the ensembles is reflected in unobtrusive blocking that keeps the vocal lines clear and separate, especially in the final fugue. Bryn Terfel's Falstaff is a memorable creation, self-mocking and self-aggrandising at the same time--so much so, in fact, that he almost does not need the vast prosthetic body he has to wear for the part. Desiree Rancatore is an admirably sweet-toned Nanetta; Bernadette Manca di Nissa an appropriately sardonic Mistress Quickly; Roberto Frontali as Ford, in his Act 2 scena, perfectly distils and parodies every jealousy aria ever written, including Verdi's own. Haitink's conducting is exemplary in the lyrical passages, and gets almost everything out of the fast and furious comic sections. --Roz KaveneyOn the DVD: The disc comes with act introductions by James Naughtie, interviews with Haitink, Terfel and Graham Vicks and a documentary about the reaction of the stage-hands to the new building. It has scene selection and subtitles in English. --Roz Kaveney

• Mozart: Le Nozze Di Figaro (Teatro Real: TR97001BD) | Blu Ray | (31/01/2012) from £32.38   |  Saving you £-2.39 (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  From the opening notes of the overture to the final curtain, Emilio Sagi's classic, triumphant production fully brings to life all the elegant wit and theatricality of Mozarts comic masterpiece. Leading baritone Ludovic T�zier shines as the lustful Count Almaviva who attempts to obtain the favours of Figaros bride-to-be, Susanna (Isabel Rey), while Luca Pisaroni gives a feisty performance as Figaro. Conductor Jes�s L�pez Cobos masterfully captures the enchanting score. A witty yet profound ta...

• Moise Et Pharaon - Rossini | DVD | (31/10/2005) from £40.48   |  Saving you £-10.49 (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  The Rossini opera performed at the La Scala in Milan which tells the story of Moses and Egypt. Riccardi Muti conducts.

• Verdi Gala -- Greatest Operatic Arias from Giuseppe Verdi | DVD | (01/01/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  In March 2001 some of the world's greatest lyric voices assembled in the cavernous Teatro Padiglione Palacassa in Parma for a Verdi Gala to commemorate the centenary of the composer's death. The works included in this concert are generally taken from his most famous operas, but there are one or two surprises too: it's not often you get the chance to hear the gorgeous "Dieu nous separe" from the Parisian grand opera Jerusalem (1847), for example, or arias from Il Corsaro (1848). The singing is mostly of a very high standard: Barbara Frittoli uses her glorious voice with intelligence in the excerpt from Il Trovatore, and Daniela Dessi is stunning in "Pace, pace" from La Forza del Destino. Older singers like Carreras and Domingo are also still on superb form, too, and both men manage to sound heavenly while packing a mighty dramatic punch. But there are also some weak links: Mariella Devia is a little too slippy-slidy in her coloratura to be a convincing Violetta, and Leo Nucci simply shouts his way through Il Trovatore. Despite the familiarity of the material, Zubin Mehta conducts with a beguiling freshness of approach and plenty of warmth and wit: the playful phrasing in "La donna e mobile" is simply charming On the DVD: Verdi Gala comes with fine picture quality, but the recording balance favours the singers over the orchestra and leaves some details of the ensemble inaudible. Each number is introduced with a personal comment from the singers, leading to some old ham from Jose Cura and some silly journalese from the others: "And thus La Traviata was born overnight", is one particularly vacuous example. The DVD also includes a slide-show of stills from the rehearsals, and subtitles in English, German, French, Spanish and Italian. --Warwick Thompson

• Massenet: Thais | DVD | (01/09/2009) from £24.18   |  Saving you £0.81 (3.20%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Thais

• Mozart: Le Nozze Di Figaro (Teatro Real: TR97002DVD) | DVD | (31/01/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  From the opening notes of the overture to the final curtain, Emilio Sagis classic, triumphant production fully brings to life all the elegant wit and theatricality of Mozarts comic masterpiece. Leading baritone Ludovic T�zier shines as the lustful Count Almaviva who attempts to obtain the favours of Figaros bride-to-be, Susanna (Isabel Rey), while Luca Pisaroni gives a feisty performance as Figaro. Conductor Jes�s L�pez Cobos masterfully captures the enchanting score. A witty yet profound tal...

• New Year's Concert 2008 From La Fenice | DVD | (02/06/2008) from £16.98   |  Saving you £-2.99 (-21.40%)   |  RRP £13.99