Lucio Silla

"This production is littered with some very fine singing, with Kurt Streit being a wonderful Silla, from his first entry into the action ... Patricia Petibon ... in the role of Giunia ... is a singer I admire and ...here she is called upon not only to be a great actor but to also sing with great vocal dexterity ... The rest of the participants also offer wonderful performances ... The playing of the Orchestra of the Teatro Real de Madrid is superb ... I just wish that one day someone would produce a performance of an opera which is placed in the correct historical context".

Read review

"This production, by Claus Guth, was premiered in Vienna in 2005 ... Updated to more modern times, the set bearing no physical resemblance to Rome and the modern dress was matched by the presence of pistols and a rifle when knives are referred to. Big and chunky, the set used the revolving stage to good effect ... Despite its fraught origins, some of the most dramatic singing and interpretation come from the singing of Kurt Streit as Lucio Silla. He is past his best years as a mellifluous Mozartian, but does infuse emotion and drama in what he sings. In this latter respect he is matched by the raven-haired Patricia Petibon for whom he has a passionate love. She acts with conviction though not always matched by her opera seria coloratura singing ... This performance has many virtues. The slow evolution of the story and its stylised music will disappoint those more enthusiastic about the composer's da Ponte operas or Magic Flute".

Read review

"Lucio Silla bliver man glad for, for Jürgen Flimm har skabt en højdramatisk forestilling, hvor fyrsten - stik imod forlægget - dolkes ihjel, mens folket hylder ham. Dermed dekonstrueres operaens eget budskab om, at tyrannen er god nok på bunden, og det er både flot, frækt og foruroligende gjort".

Read review

"Flimm råder over ret så karismatiske sangere, som er finmekanisk iscenesatte. Annick Massis som en tranceagtig Giunia, Monica Bacelli som en dyster Cecilio og Julia Kleiter som en anæmisk Celia ... Tenoren Roberto Saccá som Silla ligner Tony Curtis i en fuldblods psykopatrolle, og ikke mindre manisk sørger sopranen Veronica Cangemi for at skabe en afsindigt intrigerende Cinna".

Read review

"Her er meget nytænkt og vidunderlig musik".

Read review

"Excellent performance but one which is uncomfortably arrogant about suppressing the concepts of noble vitue and forgiveness which stand at the core of Mozart's opratic world ... The orchestra and chorus of La Fenice are a little flabby at times but superb singing Veronica Cangemi, Annick Massis and Julia Kleiter makes one appreciate the level of musical maturity and penetrating dramatic thrust in so many of the 16-year-old Mozart's arias".

"Editor's choice: It's a fascinating and demanding production, for the viewer as well as, clearly, the performers. In the title-role, Kurt Streit, a distinguished Mozartian who's turned in recent years to heavier roles, is compelling, the voice's sweetness now mixed with an extra stern virility ... Anyone interested in the drama of this early Mozart opera seria should seek out Guth's fascinating staging".

"Here's a director who makes no apology for the work ... [Pynkoski] creates his own aesthetic of artful, flowing theatricality, which is underlined effectively by Antoine Fontaine's designs ... Špicer sings mellifluously even if his tone is short of sweetness and focus ... Crebassa makes a fantastic Cecilio, handsome and beautifully sung ... Mark Minkowski conducts the La Scala orchestra with plenty of verve ... For an effective video version of this opera, this can be recommended.