Lully - Armide - Passacaille - Mercury Baroque

[jsscm02]

Why oh why? Compare to les arts florissants for something that looks like choreography.

[wilmdude71]

Great to see Opera performed with a minimalist approach. It is past time for it to become more approachable to the non-opera snob! Not that I don't enjoy the Grand performaces, I also like to see new ideas. This is definite different.

[NorbertZF]

BTW, what did they spend on costuming and stage scenery? About a $1.98???

It looks it!

[NorbertZF]

The music is by Lully, Louis XIV personal composer and whose music he personally danced in the ballets for the court. Regal, grandeur, profound, big production!

None of which is displayed here, outside of the music. So much concern about "original" instruments and performance practices but ZIPPO about the choreography of the time. "Gene Kelly dances to Lully" is about what it amounts to, all due respect to Gene Kelly btw.

[proulxmontpellier]

C'aurait pas été mal si les danseurs avaient dansé...

[williejax2]

you just KNOW Houston has to do things differently! 

[IfByWhiskey486]

Armide - one of the finest Baroque operas, in my opinion. But it doesn't deserve this absolutely terrible staging... if you can call it that. I'm all for regietheater, but this is phoney. 

Try the performance by William Christie and Robert Carsen - that one has modernity and class.

[Manric0]

@IfByWhiskey486

I agree one hundred percent, Whiskey. By the way, the Christie production is available on DVD (surprisingly cheap.) Alas, the subtitles are also in French, but who cares. I just immerse myself in the music and watch the marvelous creativity of stage direction and choreography in that one. I also think that the chorus work in that production is as good as anything I've heard from the Met or the big houses in Europe. (I'm a chorister myself, and appreciate good work.)

[pscar1]

Horrendous. I agree with DuoContinuo and lalungenuictdestens.

[yglofmi]

@pscar1 no final das contas, essas interpretações modernocas já estão parecendo mais velhas do que a pedra lascada.

[proulxmontpellier]

@yglofmi Je suis bien d'accord!

[lalungenuictdestens]

Wonderful orchestra and choir! horrible post-mo gay performance; Lully's music should be treated with respect; damn all those actual stage directors that lack of good taste and think that such performances will atract more money to their pockets; Lully is immortal, and don't need of these shit.

[JelliusAugustus]

I agree with you! He was the musicien of the Sun. Le musicien du soleil

[DuoContinuo]

@lalungenuictdestens from Siegfried

hi Arturo, my friend, you are so right!!!!

recently, in the Berlin Komische Oper we also had to watch even bigger shit

(fucking couples on the stage!) at a beautiful baroque opera´s music!

[nadiasviolino]

Beautiful interpretation!