I bow to the convention of opera interviews in reporting that Patrizia Ciofi arrives in true diva style: fifteen minutes late, but that’s really as far as the stereotype can stretch. Of course, the ...

Normally the drama happens on the stage, not in the wings. Not so in Covent Garden, where opera director Laurent Pelly has swapped the leading lady in his production of Giacomo Meyerbeer's epic opera ...

When soprano Patrizia Ciofi last appeared at Covent Garden, she was a metaphorical knight on a white charger. Casting problems saw her stepping in without rehearsal for a new production of Meyerbeer’s ...

It was always going to be a drama when the Royal Opera House staged its first production in more than 120 years of Robert le diable, Giacomo Meyerbeer’s epic opera. However, in addition to having a ...

Only three of the four works that soprano Patrizia Ciofi sings with energy and style on this disc are motets by Vivaldi, selected from the 20-odd that are extant. The other piece, Laudate Pueri ...

La Straniera is nowadays widely considered to be Bellini's problem piece, but it was hugely popular in its day. The complex narrative is curiously prophetic of Anne Brontë's The Tenant of Wildfell ...

Two splendid new releases of sacred choral and vocal music add to the recent floodtide of Vivaldi on recordings. Fabio Biondi conducts four motets for soprano and strings, securing richly textured, ...

Lyric Opera is going on the theory that if one Verdi work is good box-office insurance at season’s end, two Verdi works must be even better. And so the company is bringing back “La Traviata” with a ...

Find out what’s new to watch this week on streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+, BritBox, Apple TV, Prime Video and more, plus Digital releases. Super Bowl movie trailers including Supergirl and ...