"Steinberg's leadership is faultless, with forward propulsion that actually turns the opera into real drama. He also gets superb playing from the Orchestre National du Capitole and glorious choral work from both the Capitole and La Scala singers ... The vocal star of the show is, quite rightly, tenor Torsten Kerl ... and while his tone can be a bit leathery, it is mostly appealing and he's an intelligent artist ... The production is odd and fiercely stylized ... A Rienzi that has almost two hours of music removed, but this does not feel like a 'highlights' from Rienzi' project. It gives a good sense".