From the Glyndebourne Touring Opera 1990. Stephen Lawless’s production, conducted by Graeme Jenkins, won universal critical praise, typified by The Financial Times: “One may wonder whether the score has ever sounded fuller, richer in colour and content, more beautiful, than it did in [this] production… It opens a new chapter in the opera’s performance history.” Britten’s final opera, a haunting rendering of Thomas Mann’s story of obsessive, self-deluding love, features outstanding performances by Robert Tear and Alan Opie.” (Sung in English)
Gloriana
From the English National Opera 1984 Sarah Walker stars as Queen Elizabeth I of
England in a production by Colin Graham which succeeds memorably in capturing Britten’s dramatic
blend of passionate music, pageantry and psychological intensity. The relationship between the
ageing queen and the young Earl of Essex (Anthony Rolfe Johnson) throws into focus her lifelong
dilemma – the conflict of duty and personal love. “An operatic feast not to be missed” (The
Times). (Sung in English)