David Alden

Queen Semiramide is haunted by the ghosts of her past. Together with her lover Assur, she once murdered her husband King Nino; a deed which ever since has weighed heavily upon her. With her marriage to Arsace, she hopes her soul will at last find solace. Her love, however, is misplaced. Arsace not only loves another, he is also, as is later revealed, the son Semiramide and Nino believed to be dead. He is faced with a decision: should he avenge the death of his father – and thus become his mother's killer?

Ethereal music, a fairytale plot, beguiling sets and spectacular special effects all these combined to make Rinaldo in every sense the Baroque multimedia event par excellence. In his modern staging, producer David Alden has resorted to all kinds of magic tricks. The mourning Almirena, for example, is suspended like a paralysed mermaid in a neon-blue water tank for her aria Lascia ch'io pianga. Armida constantly struggles to make her obstinate pet Hydra see reason, and no expense is spared on the stylishly artistic dance interludes. The characters move in an ironic blend of Twenties look, trendy club scene and sacro' kitsch. Unsurprisingly, opera-goers were quick to latch onto such a glittering and star studded production. Indeed, there can be no doubt that the American David Daniels is the undisputed star of this Munich production, even alongside the other famous names on the cast list.

David Alden’s elegant 2012 production moves Verdi’s thrilling drama to a timeless setting inspired by film noir. Marcelo Álvarez is Gustavo III, the Swedish king in love with Amelia (Sondra Radvanovsky), the wife of his best friend and counselor, Count Anckarström (Dmitri Hvorostovsky). When Anckarström joins a conspiracy to murder the king, tragedy ensues. Stephanie Blythe is the fortuneteller Madame Ulrica Arvidsson and Kathleen Kim sings the page Oscar. Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi is on the podium.

Here is a rare and exceptional example in which the director and costume designer amuse themselves with `silly' costumes, but it actually works. I usually loath the stupid concept of 'clever' producers' of dressing opera singers in an motley set of `modern' and bizarre costumes (mostly tasteless) to help the `stupid' spectators to understand the universality of the opera across time and place. However, in this particular production I enjoyed every moment of it. All my reservations withstanding, I found that the costumes have actually helped highlight the `buffa' aspects of this supposedly `siria' opera. This work may not be among Handel's greatest masterpieces, but the way it is presented and sung here makes it a thorough pleasure for the senses.

Live from Munich 2004

The English National Opera first mounted David Alden's production of Ariodante, one of Handel's greatest masterpieces, in 1993. It met with unanimous critical and popular acclaim, and this 1996 revival features many of the leading singers from the original production. Ariodante is Handel's 1735 setting of an episode from Ariosto, in which the King of Scotland's daughter is treacherously accused of infidelity to her promised husband. The range of feelings provoked as the characters develop is caught in music of quite extraordinary emotional power, even by Handel's own exalted standards.

Combining a concert film with a making-of documentary, this presentation provides a dramatization of Franz Schubert's famed song cycle along with a unique look at the collaborative process in bringing the production to the screen. Tenor Ian Bostridge vocalizes the part of the wanderer from Wilhelm Müller's poems (on which the cycle is based), with Julius Drake accompanying him on piano and David Alden directing.

Cox works by day, and Box by night. Their rascally landlord lets the same room to both of them and doubles his profit. But eventually they discover they are not only involved with the same girl... but are indeed long-lost brothers! Featuring the London Symphony Orchestra and the Ambrosian Opera Chorus