Kristina Hammarström

With her husband apparently drowned at sea, a scheming empress secures the throne for her son from another marriage. But the commander of the army has other ideas, and then the emperor returns, very much alive. Drottningholm Palace Theatre (Drottningholms slottsteater in Swedish), located at Drottningholm Palace in Stockholm, is one of the few 18th century theatres in Europe that is still used as a theatre with original stage machinery. The beautiful rococo backdrop is the starting point for this production of Agrippina. The Italian conductor and harpsichordist Francesco Corti, a regular collaborator of the orchestras Les Musiciens du Louvre and Il Pomo d'Oro, presides over Handel’s music which is bursting with originality and fun, as well as carefully considered moments of great beauty.

Antonio Vivaldi’s baroque music masterpiece Juditha triumphans is presented by the Greek National Opera for the first time, as part of the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the Greek Revolution. The work is about the victory of the Venetians at the siege of Corfu, which acted as a catalyst in stopping the Ottoman advance into the Christian West. Juditha triumphans is the only extant oratorio of the four Vivaldi is known to have composed. The intense war atmosphere is portrayed through the dynamic choral parts, while Juditha’s faith and honesty through the lyric and tender writing. Remarkable is the use of many different and relatively rare instruments, such as the viola d’amore, the chalumeaux (early clarinets) and theorboes, with which Vivaldi brings out the work’s highlights.

Live performance from the Grand Théâtre de Genève, February 25 2016.

The young wine god Dionysus returns to his native town of Thebes after having established his cult in the east. In his entourage, he has a run of Bacchantes. Semele, his mother, was distrusted by her family when she claimed that Zeus was the father of her child. Dionysus has come to restore her, revealing his divinity, and require proper worship of the Theban legion.

The setting of the opera is the enchantress Alcina's island: here by her magic powers she has created a magnificent palace in a beautiful landscape, to lure her many lovers into her power. One of these is Ruggiero, a warrior, who under Alcina's spell has forsaken his duty and his betrothed, Bradamante.

Réné Jacobs reinvents Handel’s Orlando for the 21st century with the help of the young period instrument ensemble B’Rock and a brilliant cast of soloists led by Bejun Mehta as the title hero and Sophie Karthäuser as his adored Angelica.