Product Details

• Actors: Christine Schafer, Alice Coote, Philip Langridge, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus
• Directors: Vladimir Jurowski (Conductor)
• Format: Classical, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English (DTS 5.1), English (PCM Stereo), Italian (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Emi Classics
• DVD Release Date: September 16, 2008
• Run Time: 123 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001D6OKV0
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,615 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel (The Metropolitan Opera HD Live Series)" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

The Metropolitan Opera's acclaimed Live in High-Definition series, which projects live performances into theaters across the globe, has met with unprecedented critical and commercial success and has made opera convenient and affordable to millions of viewers worldwide. Now, EMI Classics is proud to collaborate with The Met to release 6 new DVDs made from these broadcast performances.

A striking new English-language production of Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel, starring Alice Coote and Christine Schäfer, with tenor Philip Langridge in the role of the Witch. Vladimir Jurowski, one of the world's most sought-after conductors, leads a sensitive account of Humperdinck's enchanting score, and Richard Jones and John Macfarlane provide a staging that is "is tough and dark, sparse and savage, an exploration of deprivation, cruelty and gluttony in a contemporary always-always-land."
-Financial Times

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Leaves a Bad Aftertaste, May 11, 2009

By 

David Cady (NYC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel (The Metropolitan Opera HD Live Series) (DVD)

I'm all for a dark take on Humperdinck's "Hansel and Gretel." This is, after all, a tale with child abuse and cannibalism at its core, topics of which the Brothers Grimm had no difficulty writing, in both figurative and metaphorical terms. In this grotesque production, however, director Richard Jones doesn't simply touch on these themes, he molests them. Among his subtle directorial touches are the following: on hearing about the Witch, Mom vomits large chunks of food in full view of the audience; said Witch force feeds Hansel by sticking a tube and funnel down his throat; after the Witch is pushed into the oven (she's gassed, get it?), Gretel smears some chocolate on Hansel's upper lip, making him appear like Adolf Hitler. Excuse me, this is the Met's annual holiday opera for children? What's next, "Wozzeck" in a new translation by Martin McDonough?

Maybe Jones believes that, with the proliferation and popularity of violent video games, children's tastes have changed, that they crave more graphic and grotesque forms of entertainment. Perhaps. But do we, as adults, have to give it to them? Can we not endeavor to preserve and/or foster a sense of magic and wonderment in our children? Isn't there a balance between exposing them to the "real" world and encouraging imagination and flights of fancy? Jones is all for the former, but is far less successful at (and seems less interested in) the latter. Imagine a version of "The Nutcracker" in which Clara is raped by The Mouse King, or the ethnic dancers are ragged, starving street urchins who knife one another for sugarplums. That's the kind of production this is.

For the most part, the roles are superbly realized and sung. The exceptions are a dull Philip Langridge, whose performance as the Witch is as flabby as his prosthetic arms, and a dour and screechy Rosiland Plowright, decked out, for some reason, as a cross between "AbFab's" Patsy on a bender and Michael Caine in "Dressed to Kill." Thankfully, conductor Vladimir Jurowski has an expert handle on the intricate beauty of the lush, transcendent score, even if his stage director does not.

If you want a story about nasty children with nasty parents who have nasty things happen to them, perhaps this is the "Hansel and Gretel" for you. (Or maybe you should check out Ravel's "L'Enfant et les Sortileges.") But if you're looking for a production that charms, delights and reinforces your faith in humanity and the triumph of good over evil...look elsewhere.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars a pathetic, bastardized, take and mess on a children's fairy tale, February 23, 2010

By 

Vincent Corso Jr. "vincent corso opera lover" (HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA, US) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel (The Metropolitan Opera HD Live Series) (DVD)

I too saw this mess of a production. I had to put my two sense in and say something. I remember seeing this monstrosity when it aired on PBS and was horrified at what I saw. Pigs instead of angels? Now really, this was going a bit too far. I personally have the 1982 version of the Metropolitan opera . It was a stupendous production. But this was a disaster... The music and performances were top notch. but the plot and characterizations with pig faces . It is apparent what the Grimm brothers were expressing in their story but this was going too far... imaginative, innovative, i think not a mess is what I call it... and that is being nice... If you want a wonderful production of the treasure "Hansel and Gretel" choose the 1982 production. It is a sumptuous delight for adults and children....

15 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars This was the worst!, October 29, 2009

By 

Loves Books and Music "skoiyase" (Mahopac, New York USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel (The Metropolitan Opera HD Live Series) (DVD)

I took my 7 year old daughter to see this at the Met. I can honestly tell you that this was the most disgusting thing I have ever witnessed, disgusting to the point that my daughter nearly became ill. I can honestly tell you that most of the people leaving the opera house at Lincoln center were also flabbergasted and nauseated by this bizarre production of a classic. If you enjoy watching people throwing up, and little children eating burnt corpses then by all means buy this, this is for you. But if you wish to see a production meant for young children, then run for your life from this one. Your youngsters will need a long chat with a psychiatrist after seeing this, as certainly does the creator of this horror show. The only redeeming quality was the superb music, other than that, forget it! By the way, a prominent critic said of this production that this wasn't "Hansel and Gretel," but more like "Hambone and Gristle!" I totally concur! There is nothing wrong with a little tradition when something is meant for children, I can get the other stuff from B horror movies if I so choose and I don't have to pay $100.00 dollars a ticket. Buying the DVD would only add insult to injury!