16/07/2026
5⭐️ review in The Stage.
Congratulations!
Scottish Opera Opera Holland Park
"In this production, the white ties, bustles and plumed headdresses of 19th-century Europe are swapped for the glamorous world of 1950s New York, and the update works brilliantly. The warning to switch off mobile phones is delivered in the voice of a Mafia gangster, and, from the moment the cartoon titles roll, we are in the world of movies, jazz clubs and radio stars.
The highlight of this farcical element is Hanna shimmying up the side of a balcony and Valentina shimmying down as they swap places to convince Don Zeta that it is Hanna who has been dallying with Camille in the bedroom beyond.
Paula Sides, who is simply sensational as Hanna, and Richard Burkhard does a terrific comic turn as Don Zeta, as does Matthew Kellett as his sidekick Nicky Negus.
The opulence which director John W Savournin believes is essential to the story - comes in the set and costume design from takis, including the jewel colours of the women's dresses in the opening party scene; the beauty of the sun-drenched terrace of Hanna's Sicilian villa with its six huge lemon trees in terracotta pots; and the rich crimson drapes in Maxim's night club where the closing action takes place.
Both male and female choruses have numbers that could be straight out of a Broadway musical - the line of succession between Lehar and Rodgers and Hammerstein is very short. The chorus delivers a wealth of entertaining stage business slickly, and the orchestra captures the salon-music style beautifully.”
