Nick Hammond
Des Hommes et des Dieux
Inspired by real events that occurred in 1996, when a group of French Cistercian monks was abducted from their monastery in the Atlas Mountains in northern Algeria and held hostage by Islamic militants, Des Hommes et des Dieux (Of Gods … Read More
Year in Review
Ricarda Merbeth as Ariadne in Ariadne auf Naxos. Photo: Julien Benhamou/Opéra National de Paris On the operatic front, after the production disasters of 2009, 2010 turned out to be a bumper year. From the perfectly acceptable Cunning Little Vixen (Janacek) … Read More
Le Nom des Gens
Le Nom des Gens has so much going for it: witty dialogue, imaginative touches, engagement with some interesting political issues, a strong lead performance from Jacques Gamblin and even a brief appearance by former French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin. So … Read More
Ariadne auf Naxos
Zerbinetta (Jane Archibald) tries to convince Ariadne (Ricarda Merbeth) to lighten up a little. Photo: Julien Benhamou/Opéra national de Paris With Paris enduring its heaviest snowfalls in years last week and many motorists spending hours stuck in their cars, the … Read More
La Princesse de Montpensier
Marie-Madeleine de Lafayette’s La Princesse de Clèves (1678), considered by many to be the first modern novel – and denigrated a few years ago by that authority on high culture, Nicolas Sarkozy – has tempted many a movie director, usually … Read More
Les Amours Imaginaires
Canadian filmmaker Xavier Dolan is almost indecently precocious. After writing, directing and starring in the favorably received J’Ai Tué Ma Mère (2009), he has now done the same thing in his second film, Les Amours Imaginaires. And he’s still only … Read More
Il Trittico
Tamar Iveri as Suor Angelica in the Puccini opera of the same name. Photo © Ian Patrick / Opéra National de Paris The operas of Giacomo Puccini, that most unapologetically sentimental of composers, are designed to make you cry. … Read More
The Flying Dutchman
Erik (Klaus Florian Vogt) bows his head in grief while the Dutchman (James Morris) watches from the doorway. Photo © Opéra National de Paris/Frédérique Toulet In the program notes for the current production of Richard Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman (Le … Read More
Markets and More
Having spent a good part of August driving around France, I am happy to report that provincial markets are as lively and eccentric as ever. From the stacked rows … No dead ducks, just dead geese at the marché … Read More
