We round up the reviews for Handel’s opera being revived in London until the 6th December.
Broadway World: **** “Partenope sometimes struggles under the weight of the period setting it seems to have arbitrarily imposed, visually compelling though that setting is. Seventeen years on from this production’s premiere, though, there is still substance to match the style.”
The Guardian: **** “Nardus Williams is extremely stylish in the updated title role. She has a lot of singing to do, and though she took time to settle into her best voice, the broad lines of her act two aria, where she declares her longing for Arsace, were an ideal fit. As Arsace, the countertenor Hugh Cutting reached the evening’s peak in his emotionally jangled act-three aria of renunciation, with the theorbo and strings captivating in their accompaniment.”
The Stage: *** “Christopher Alden’s revival of Handel’s opera features a sensational ENO debut by Hugh Cutting.”
MusicOMH.com: “Christopher Alden’s surrealist staging of Handel’s Partenope is a riot of wit, elegance and vocal brilliance that reminds us why ENO matters.”
Bachtrack.com: **** “The opera’s countertenors, meanwhile, fought their own battle. The result was a draw since the aforementioned Ingbar and rising star Hugh Cutting were both, for want of a better cliché, dazzling. Cutting effaced memories of the production’s previous use of female singers as Arsace with a performance of intensity, musicality and vocal clarity that will live long in the memory.”
The Telegraph: **** “The return of the ENO’s Partenope comes with toilet jokes, tap dancing and parody costumes.”
The Reviews Hub: ***** “But at the heart of this production is Nardus Williams as Partenope. Her voice is glorious, effortless in Handel’s rich ornamentation and with a suppleness that allows her to move from imperious to playfully flirtatious.”
Theatre Cat: “The cast are musical athletes every one, showpiece after showpiece sparkling with feeling and a bright, precise Enlightenment orderliness transcending the absurdities of story and action.”
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