Royal Opera House: La Traviata ( 2009 )

Overview

Renée Fleming has matured into one of the finest sopranos around at the moment, a true star with a sparkling personality and a velvet-toned voice that is capable of wringing the finest emotions out of works by Strauss and Tchaikovsky that from a lesser singer could sound rather cold and clinical. I wouldn't have thought her voice would be so well suited to Violetta Valéry in La Traviata, and it does take some getting used to, but I think she at least brings a distinct quality to the role with an emotional heart that isn't always necessarily there when a leading diva uses it primarily as a display for her vocal talents. It's served well also by Antonio Pappano's conducting of the Royal Opera House Orchestra in a traditional, but effective production by Richard Eyre.

Top Cast

Renée Fleming

Violetta Valéry

Joseph Calleja

Alfredo Germont

Thomas Hampson

Giorgio Germont

Monika-Evelin Liiv

Flora Bervoix

Eddie Wade

Il barone Douphol

Kostas Smoriginas

Il Marchese d'Obigny

Antonio Pappano

Self - Conductor

Richard Wiegold

Il dottor Grenvil

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House

Self - Orchestra

Haoyin Xue

Gastone de Letorières

Sarah Pring

Annina

Neil Gillespie

Giuseppe

Charbel Mattar

Messenger

Jonathan Coad

Servant