DVD Videos

Subtitles: English, French, Italian, Japanese

Sets & Costumes by PIER LUIGI PIZZI

Arthaus presents a new production of La Gioconda recorded at the renowned opera house in Barcelona. The staging was realized in cooperation with the Arena di Verona and successfully shown in the famous opera festival’s 2005 programme. The Barcelona production features internationally acclaimed singers as well as celebrated soloists and ballet dancers from the Gran Teatre del Liceu – all showing a musically and dramatically impressive performance of this melodrama. The title role is sung by American soprano Deborah Voigt, one of the most important dramatic sopranos in her generation. Critics have praised her „lyricism, beauty of tone and dramatic acuity“ and her „impressive aura and voice.“ Polish contralto Ewa Podle appears as her blind mother, delighting the audience with the overwhelming warmth and broad range of her voice while convincingly conveying her character’s suffering. The Canadian tenor Richard Margison takes the role of the exiled nobleman Enzo and the Italian baritone Carlo Guelfi sings the spy and agent provocateur Barnaba. Both excel opposite the two female characters. The ballet – set to the famous “Dance of the Hours” – deservedly received extended ovations. The choreography – danced by two star dancers of the Barcelona ballet – tells a love story in view of ongoing time, symbolised by the twelve hours.

La Gioconda is a typical Romantic opera reflecting various strands of 19th-century European melodrama. Even though it rests on the foundations of French grand opera, most obviously in its third-act ballet, the work follows the Italian and especially the Verdian tradition with its inspired arias, wonderful choruses and impressive orchestration. At the same time the vocal writing and a number of its dramatic effects point the way forward to verismo. The sets and costumes of the present production are the work of the distinguished Italian architect and director Pier Luigi Pizzi, whose staging is classical in its nobility.

Sound Format: PCM Stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1

Picture Format: 16:9

DVD Format: 2 x DVD 9, NTSC

Subtitle Languages: IT (Original Language), GB, DE, FR, ES, Catalan

Running Time: 174 mins

FSK: 0

Choreographed by Kathleen Marshall

Directed for the stage and adapted for television by Michael Blakemore

Brush up your Shakespeare - November sees the long-awaited release on DVD of the London production of Cole Porter‘s Kiss Me Kate, revived for Broadway in 2001. It‘s one of Porter‘s best-known musicals showcasing some of his greatest songs („Too Darn Hot“, „So In Love“, „Why Can‘t You Behave“, „Wunderbar“, „Another Op‘nin; Another Show“) and based on Shakespeare‘s The Taming Of The Shrew.

Filmed live in front of the Victoria Palace Theatre audience, this show boasts a cast including Brent Barrett and Rachel York, veterans of the multiple award-winning North American production, as well as one of Hollywood‘s current leading heartthrobs, Colin Farrell. This London revival won the London Evening Standard Theatre Award for “Best Musical” and the Critics‘ Circle Theatre Award for “Best Musical”.

„With his warm, radiant baritone, Brent Barrett is perfection as Fred/Petruchio, delivering a drolly winning send-up of macho swagger that enhances his romantic appeal.“ The Independent

„With its blissfully tuneful score, superbly witty lyrics and great charge of Broadway energy, this blazingly confident show shines like a beacon.“ The Daily Telegraph

Sound Format: LPCM Stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1

Picture Format: 16:9

DVD Format: DVD 9, NTSC

Subtitle Languages: GB, DE, FR, ES, IT

Running Time: 146 mins

FSK: 0

Original Broadway stars Alfred Drake and Patricia Morison recreate their roles in this legendary 1958 television production of Cole Porter’s most beloved musical. Black & white, mono, 4:3, 78 min., all regions

Specials:

•'Virtual Visit’ to the shrine of the Black Madonna of Rocamadour.

•Documentary on Black Madonnas

•32 page illustrated booklet in English, French and German with an in-depth article on Poulenc, Rocamadour and Black Madonnas.

PICTURE FORMAT: 16:9

LENGTH: 78 MINS

SOUND: DOLBY SURROUND / LPCM STEREO

SUBTITLES: EN/FR/DE/ES

The third release in ‘L’Opéra Français Collection’ series of DVDs, covering the diverse repertoire of French Opera. This DVD, with a duration of 112 mins plus a bonus DVD exploring the Theatre Imperial, duration 187 mins, comes in glowing 5.1 surround sound for the main DVD plus English subtitles.

A live and televised recording from this year's BBC Proms performance on 5th August by the most famous a cappella group ever: the King's Singers. Regularly performing in excess of 100 concerts every season complemented by recording and teaching, The King's Singers delight audiences around the world with their incomparable musicianship, charm and wit.With the recent album release Landscape and Time having been described as possessing "singing of rare distinction", and "stunningly high musical standards", they have maintained their place at the apex of a cappella singing, and are counted amongst the world's elite classical performers. Continuing Signum's release series in celebration of the group's 40th Anniversary year, Simple Gifts (SIGCD121) and a 5-CD ‘best of’ (SIGCD120), this performance was in many ways a retrospective of the groups musical history, encompassing some of the earliest arrangements that the original line-up performed right up to contemporary works that they recently commissioned. Available on CD and DVD, the DVD includes extra interviews with the group from Suzy Klein and Gareth Malone, star of BBC series The Choir, and can also be enjoyed in 5.1 surround sound.

CONCERT REVIEW:

"In an exquisitely programmed concert, there was music ranging from the Renaissance to the present, including the opening selection of Poulenc's witty “Chansons françaises" and various Victorian parlour songs "in the biggest Victorian parlour ever built." …the pure quality of the vocal balance is quite extraordinary. The King's Singers had travelled back in time some 400 years (who needs Dr Who at the Proms?). Then followed an example of the many works the group has commissioned, John McCabe's haunting evocation of American wastelands, "Scenes in America deserta", based on the writings of architectural historian Reyner Banham. McCabe took his bow. The evening ended with folksongs arranged by Gordon Langford and members of the group, Bob Chilcott (who left in 1997) and current baritone Philip Lawson. Langford's "Widdicombe" Fair played to the group's effortless resource of funny voices and genial comedy. The encore was Arthur Sullivan's arrangement of "The Long Day Closes", apposite for a concert finishing at fifteen minutes short of midnight and perfectly judged in this performance." Classical Source

Set Design by Raimund Bauer.

The opera Dialogues of the Carmelites is the only opera the French composer Francis Poulenc has ever written. It is based on the screenplay Die begnadigte Angst by Georges Bernanos. The material for the opera is based on actual historic events. Poulenc converges religion and revolution: The young Blanche de la Force who suffers from existential fear all life long, escapes into a convent hoping to conquer her paralysing fear of life and death. Even the walls of the convent cannot stop the French Revolution. The nuns of the Carmelite Order fail to resist it and accept to die in martyrdom. Fascinated by their constancy finally Blanche overcomes her angst and follows her sisters to the scaffold. This dramatic opera in three acts had its debut performance at La Scala in Milan in 1957. With its religious theme this opera takes a special position in the theatre of music in the 20th century. Poulencs clear and insistent musical language is perfectly interpreted by conductor Simone Young and the Philharmoniker Hamburg. This production showcases big, vibrant voices from all age categories who are not only brilliant in singing but also in acting. Besides the great musical performance, the main reason for the huge success of the opera is stage director Nikolaus Lehnhoff. His simplistic stage design together with the mystic light installation this opera guarantees great listening and also an amazing viewing pleasure.

“…the sheer power of Lehnhoff’s final scene simply takes your breath away.” Hamburger Abendblatt

“It is remarkable how Lehnhoff succeeds in narrating the events of a two-and-a-half hour drama that is low on action without losing power or intensity.” Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

Sound Format: PCM STEREO, DD 5.1

Picture Format: 16:9

DVD Format: DVD 9, NTSC

Subtitle Languages: FR, GB, DE, ES, IT, JP

Running Time: 166 mins

FSK: 0