Ariodante Review: Handel's Masterpiece Tarnished by Dysfunctional Royalty
George Frideric Handel's Ariodante premiered at Covent Garden in 1735, a venue now home to the Royal Opera House. The opera's director, Jetske Mijnssen, takes a refreshingly unorthodox approach to Handel's classic tale of love and betrayal.
The royal family at the centre of the story is woefully dysfunctional. Ailing King Icaro is surrounded by his children – daughters Ginevra and Dalinda, and their suitors Polinesso and Ariodante. The overture sets the tone for a chaotic household where designer dresses are carelessly discarded like they're going out of style.
Costume designer Uta Meenen's creations add to the sense of disarray, with Spoilt Princess Ginevra throwing lavish gowns around like confetti. Meanwhile, Ariodante seems initially destined for Polinesso rather than his playful but earnest suitor Ariodante. As the story unfolds, however, all five characters must confront their own shortcomings and learn to grow up.
Mijnssen's staging is detailed and intense, even extending to the silent uniformed staff struggling to cope with the young royals' thoughtlessness. The cast delivers strong performances across the board, particularly from Christophe Dumaux as Polinesso and Ed Lyon as Luciano.
The mezzo-soprano Emily D'Angelo shines in Ariodante's long, introspective scenes, but her voice sometimes struggles to cut through the orchestral instrumentation. Jacquelyn Stucker also impresses as Ginevra, though her singing feels curiously text-driven.
Conductor Stefano Montanari injects an inventive and dynamic energy into the performance, often incorporating chamber organ and theorbo in a way that's both striking and self-consciously so. While this approach can be thrilling at times, it also leaves little room for the singers to breathe.
Ultimately, Mijnssen's Ariodante feels like two competing visions: one is Handel's timeless masterpiece, while the other is a disjunct, sometimes self-indulgent staging that prioritizes dramatic flair over musical nuance. While neither approach is entirely successful, this production remains worth seeing for its bold experimentations and strong performances from the cast.
George Frideric Handel's Ariodante premiered at Covent Garden in 1735, a venue now home to the Royal Opera House. The opera's director, Jetske Mijnssen, takes a refreshingly unorthodox approach to Handel's classic tale of love and betrayal.
The royal family at the centre of the story is woefully dysfunctional. Ailing King Icaro is surrounded by his children – daughters Ginevra and Dalinda, and their suitors Polinesso and Ariodante. The overture sets the tone for a chaotic household where designer dresses are carelessly discarded like they're going out of style.
Costume designer Uta Meenen's creations add to the sense of disarray, with Spoilt Princess Ginevra throwing lavish gowns around like confetti. Meanwhile, Ariodante seems initially destined for Polinesso rather than his playful but earnest suitor Ariodante. As the story unfolds, however, all five characters must confront their own shortcomings and learn to grow up.
Mijnssen's staging is detailed and intense, even extending to the silent uniformed staff struggling to cope with the young royals' thoughtlessness. The cast delivers strong performances across the board, particularly from Christophe Dumaux as Polinesso and Ed Lyon as Luciano.
The mezzo-soprano Emily D'Angelo shines in Ariodante's long, introspective scenes, but her voice sometimes struggles to cut through the orchestral instrumentation. Jacquelyn Stucker also impresses as Ginevra, though her singing feels curiously text-driven.
Conductor Stefano Montanari injects an inventive and dynamic energy into the performance, often incorporating chamber organ and theorbo in a way that's both striking and self-consciously so. While this approach can be thrilling at times, it also leaves little room for the singers to breathe.
Ultimately, Mijnssen's Ariodante feels like two competing visions: one is Handel's timeless masterpiece, while the other is a disjunct, sometimes self-indulgent staging that prioritizes dramatic flair over musical nuance. While neither approach is entirely successful, this production remains worth seeing for its bold experimentations and strong performances from the cast.
... I mean, we're always drawn to these lavish, extravagant productions with opulent costumes and dramatic flair, but it makes me wonder if that's really what it means to be royal 
. Is it just about throwing wealth and power around, or is there something more profound at play? Like, what does it say about us when we see the royals in these operas as more caricatures than actual people?
. Do we expect them to be flawless, or do we want them to be more human?
... but what do you think?
– but sometimes felt like it took away from the actual singing. The cast did an amazing job though! Emily D'Angelo as Ariodante was so emotive 
. And I kinda love how they incorporated the chamber organ and theorbo in some parts - it added a whole new vibe to the performance 
. But overall, I'm still on the fence about this one...
! The royal family's drama is super relatable – who hasn't had to deal with dysfunctional relatives or know-it-alls? 
. And the cast is fire 
! Christophe Dumaux as Polinesso and Ed Lyon as Luciano have amazing chemistry – I ship them 
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.
!
like the set design was straight fire but also kinda chaotic you know? 
meanwhile the music was just...different Stefano montanari's conductor style is super unique but sometimes it felt like he was trying too hard 
and omg emily d'angelo's voice is everything 
plus, the conductor's experimentation with chamber organ and theorbo sounds like a novelty at best. what about the music itself? is it really that bad to let the singers breathe every now and then? 
. Overall, it's a bit of a mess, but I suppose if you're into that sort of thing, it might be worth a watch 
. And don't even get me started on the costumes – all those designer dresses just flying around? 
. But at times I felt like the conductor was trying too hard to be fancy with all that chamber organ and theorbo business 
.
but at the same time, the costumes are literally just people throwing designer dresses around willy-nilly and its so cringeworthy 
. And the cast was on point - Christophe Dumaux as Polinesso was so charming and earnest 
, and Ed Lyon as Luciano added a great contrast to the chaos.
, which can be really cool at times... but also kinda overwhelming? Sometimes it felt like the singing was getting lost in the instrumentation. Maybe they could've found a better balance between drama and nuance?
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. It wasn't perfect, but I loved the energy and enthusiasm behind it 
!
like whats up with that? also u think jetske mynsen's staging is "detailed and intense"? i saw it live and it was more like 5 ppl running around in circles 
cant even make a good first impression on me. ed lyon as polinesso tho 
he was solid, but the rest of the cast? eh. need to see it again for real this time 