Reviews - The Grange Festival

Precipice

'an epic country stroll towards hope and renewal'

The Guardian

'the entire Valerie Barber PR: Suite 2, 9a St John’s Wood High St. London NW8 7NG Tel: 020 7586 8560 email: info@vbpr.co.uk event was a credit to Chance for opting for something entirely unpredictable, to O’Neill and Parker for staging such a one-off, and to all the performers, evidently overjoyed to be in front of a paying public again.'

The Sunday Times

'I’m very impressed by this thoughtful, well put together assembly of works which both entertains us and holds up a mirror to our times.'

Bachtrack

'The Grange whets the appetite for live performance'

Opera Now

'In short, Precipice was an artfully planned and smoothly executed collaboration, demonstrating an indomitable optimism and spirited enterprise. A veritable triumph over adversity.'

Opera Today

Belshazzar

'the augmented choir of The Sixteen – impeccably disciplined, supremely stylish – are the true stars of this enthralling show'

The Guardian

'Robert Murray made a wonderfully outrageous Belshazzar, conspicuous in his consumption, omniverous in his sexual tastes and generally self-indulgent'

Planet Hugill

'The Sixteen and their allies... sang, especially in the sublime choruses of the enslaved Jews, with a heart-lifting power that united dazzling vocal discipline with an emotional force that might have knocked down those walls by itself.

The Arts Desk

'Robert Murray’s Belshazzar steered that very fine line between undue histrionics and credibility very skilfully, and made it possible for one to believe that this personable young tenor was actually a very bad man indeed. His singing was both powerful and beguiling.'

Music OMH

'Murray, in one of his finest performances to date, makes an exceptional Belshazzar, superbly sung, attractive yet cowardly, unthinking and vainglorious'

The Guardian

Falstaff

'Many bigger companies could learn a thing or two from this astounding little festival that could. '

Interlude HK

'Conducted by the exceptional Francesco Cilluffo, Christopher Luscombe’s production for The Grange Festival succeeds beyond any possible expectations.'

The Financial Times

'Easily the best thing I’ve seen at the Grange Festival'

The Spectator

'Christopher Luscombe's production is savvily updated, precisely calibrated and musically captivating'

The Stage

'It’s rare to find an evening of comedy that seems to perfectly assembled, but the Grange delivered the full package.'

Bachtrack

'Robert Hayward made a delightful Falstaff, an old roue who has no idea that he is ridiculous but who can scrub up well (for his Act Two seduction scene) when needed. Hayward made Falstaff's self-absorbtion an enjoyable part of his routine and his nimble performance was the centrepiece which anchored the production.'

Planet Hugill

'Christopher Luscombe has created a real hit with his gently, appropriately updated setting and aptly directed singers, and the evening is the most entertaining so far of all the Summer Festival operas.'

Music OMH

'Blustering and big-bellied, a good-hearted chancer rather than anything more lecherous or lubricious, Robert Hayward is an appealing “vecchio John”, growing old disgracefully.'

The Arts Desk

Le nozze di Figaro

'With a fine cast and a production of rare wit and poignancy, this is one of those occasions which remind us that Le nozze di Figaro is truly one of life’s great operatic experiences.'

Music OMH

'Ellie Laugharne stood out as Susanna for clarity of tone and quality of legato; tightly-wound, she showed just the right combination of frustration and amusement. Barely able to conceal her physical repulsion of Almaviva, we were given a woman determined to do her utmost to take control of her fate'

Bachtrack

'Lloyd-Evans and his team ensured that the closing miracle of forgiveness and reconciliation worked its magic without cynicism, with Mihai’s Countess no longer a scorned, frantic victim but a vision of healing grace'

The Arts Desk

'Ellie Laugharne's grounded Susanna and Mihai's sorrowful Countess offer real depth of feeling, and the opera's final healing message of love and forgiveness rings completely true'

The Times

'Wallis Giunta’s Cherubino balances the layered artifice of appearing boyish while more than once playing a boy playing a girl; her innate vocal warmth lends her pubertal pageboy a winning appeal. '

The Stage

The Abduction from the Seraglio

'Things are similarly impressive vocally, with Kiandra Howarth on full throttle as Konstanze, one of Mozart’s most challenging coloratura roles. Her voice has edge, range and substance to spare, and while her volume and brilliance brook no opposition and some articulation is flattened out at the top of her voice, her performance is all part of Konstanze’s imperious and morally unassailable bearing'

Classical Source

'But Copley’s production is good fun and plays it by the book, so we actually get Osmin up a tree, picking figs, just as the libretto tells us'

bachtrack

'Making stronger impressions are bass-baritone Jonathan Lemalu as a grand-scale Osmin who savours the comic possibilities of his role, and actor Alexander Andreou in the spoken role of Pasha Selim – a character to whom he brings considerable humanity and dignity'

The Stage

'Kiandra Howarth sang as fine a Konstanze as I have heard, Christine Schäfer included, coloratura clear and meaningful, line finely spun. Humanity breathed into her character was Mozart’s - yet hers too'

Opera Today

Dance@TheGrange

'Rigorous classical technique underpinned the contemporary stylings; McGregor’s company dancers brought a surging energy, buoying up jewel-like moments from the RB stars – Soares borne aloft, Hayward whipping through the air with fierce determination; an oh-so-delicate Stix-Brunell. It was a fittingly grand finale for this first foray to the country.'

DanceTabs

The Barber of Seville

'There have been some brilliant productions of Il Barbiere di Siviglia , but this one beats them all … by a whisker!'

Mark Aspen Reviews

'This was a busily engaging performance, breaking no new ground but drawing strong performances out of the cast to ensure that the wit and musical brilliance of Rossini's opera came over'

Planet Hugill

'Charles Rice as Figaro is a charismatic presence right from his famous first aria, while David Soar as the heavyweight Don Basilio also boasts impressive talent.'

The Stage

'With an excellent performance from the chorus and a vivid, effervescent sound from the Bournemouth Symphony under the baton of eminent Rossinian David Parry, this was a corker of an evening – one to catch if at all possible.'

bachtrack

Agrippina

'In all it’s a terrific show, and the only Handel production I’ve ever seen which obeys the old showbiz principle: leave your audience wanting more.'

The Telegraph

'this is classy, provocative entertainment, and hugely enjoyable.'

The Guardian

'Walter Sutcliffe’s production trades in the thrills and spills, deceptions, seductions, and revelations, cutting out the recitatives so that the whole thing rushes along as if there’s no tomorrow.'

The Independent

'Its glorious music, political satire and imaginative staging make this an absolute must-see production.'

bachtrack

'There is nothing to equal the collaboration of real experts in their field, as The Grange Festival has demonstrated yet again with this stunning Agrippina'

musicOMH

'Walter Sutcliffe's production of the baroque opera is lively, entertaining and fun'

The Stage

'A production such as this breathes new life into Baroque opera, showing to those open-minded enough to see it, how such works can still excite attention and pleasure.'

Classical Source

'This cracking production, with its gripping mix of sex, power, schemes, politics, lies, lust and love, could have been written for the box-set age'

The Times

'Anna Bonitatibus richly captures the role of ruthless mother'

The Express

'As the opening offering of its second opera season, this is stuff that will propel The Grange Festival to the top.'

Mark Aspen Reviews

The Grange Festival International Singing Competition 2017

'We were blessed with six young singers all at the start of successful careers and all capable of making the audience feel that they would wish to be nowhere else in the world at that moment than listening and watching them'

Opera Now

'For my own part, I am glad that other people were on the jury, because all the artists brought something special to the afternoon.'

Planet Hugill

'Compulsory Handel Aria in every selection? Now thats my kind of singing competition.'

musicOMH

Mansfield Park

'David Parry drove this sparkling score forward with ease and drew polished playing from members of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Trinity Laban'

Bachtrack

'a finely crafted, instantly attractive opera'

Classical Source

'Personality oozes from Sarah Pring’s Lady Bertram and Jeni Bern’s Mrs Norris, while the other roles are all solidly sung.'

The Stage

'I would put an Austen tenner on this becoming a summer opera favourite, not least because it is both amusing and heartfelt. Dove and his librettist, Alasdair Middleton, are in tune with Mansfield Park's sense and sensibilities'

The Times

'Martin Lloyd-Evans directs the staging energetically, framed by Dick Bird's simple but elegant design'

The Telegraph

'Dove and his librettist Alasdair Middleton, did provide us with charming entertainment which was stylishly and slickly staged by director Martin Lloyd-Evans and designer Dick Bird'

Opera Today

'The grandiose architecture of The Grange was a fitting place to stage this new operatic production of Mansfield Park celebrating Jane Austen’s 200th and extending The Grange Festival’s successful 2017 season'

The Arbuturian

Albert Herring

'a delicious delight... impeccably directed, conducted and sung'

The Times

'as delightful as the day it was written'

Financial Times

‘Copley's expertly crafted production extracts every ounce of humour from Britten's cosy comedy; in the pit, Steuart Bedford brings precision and sensibility'

The Guardian

‘This is the best show I've seen there since the daring shot at Prokofiev's The Gambler a decade ago'

The Arts Desk

‘John Copley directs a peach of an Albert Herring for The Grange Festival'

Bachtrack

‘Pinkstone allowed his performance to become more animated and the final scene was a brilliant mixture of comedy and seriousness'

Planet Hugill

The cast was a true ensemble one, without a weak link in its golden chain'

musicOMH

‘a triumph of casting... superb singing and acting'

Classical Source

‘reassuringly skilful stagecraft' 'The ensemble is uniformly strong, but some rising singers really grab their chances'

The Stage

Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria

‘Anna Bonitatibus hit the emotional bull’s eye’, 'attractively sung and superbly acted'

Bachtrack

‘Meticulously directed by Tim Supple and inventively designed by Sumant Jayakrishnan’

The Daily Telegraph

A bold and innovative launch to the new Grange Festival’ ‘a new Grange Festival has risen phoenix-like in Hampshire’ ‘Exemplary central performances’

The Times

‘Nilon wonderfully captures Ulisse’s noble anguish’ ‘Bonitatibus embodies Monteverdian singing at its finest, fusing text and line into a single expressive unit, emotions contained and vivid.’

The Guardian

‘Paul Nilon turns in an extraordinary Ulisse’

The Stage

Carmen

'Bizet's orchestration, sparklingly dispatched by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the conductor Jean-Luc Tingaud'