Most Helpful Customer Reviews
24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent!, September 28, 2000
Everything about this video is just wonderful! It is humorous & delightful, the acting is great, the choreography is wonderful, the singing and orchestra is great, the tempo is brisk, the sound mixing is good, the sets are fabulous (they are a bit avant garde, but it works ok here.) This is the 3RD time I've watched this video (1st time on DVD.) I upgraded from the laser disk version, and it was a good thing too. The laser disk had problems with the sound mixing which was fixed on the DVD version. There are no extras, just the performance and a chapter menu. The menu does not even break up the contents between Act I & Act II, so it is very rudimentary. That's the only downside to this otherwise great DVD!
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding and great fun, January 20, 2002
This Opera National de Lyon production is simply delightful. The singing is excellent and the audio quality of the DVD is as good. The video is of an equal quality. The staging is unusual but comes off brilliantly. The use of the minimalist sets works very well and I wouldn't have expected it to do so. It is slightly surreal but this is a slightly (?) surreal opera. The sets work with the opera and never detract from the opera or become intrusive. The singers seem to be enjoying themselves and inviting you to enjoy it with them. In fact, joy might be a good one-word description of the entire opera. There is some slapstick in it but never at the cost of the opera. Instead, it seems to enhance it. The scene with the cook and her "deadly" ladle is delightful but only slightly better than the other scenes. This is my first experience with an Opera National de Lyon production and I throughly enjoyed it. I got the opera several months ago and find I watch it about once a month.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Slapstick opera, March 11, 2000
This review is from: Sergei Prokofiev - The Love of Three Oranges (Opera National de Lyon) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
If the Marx Brothers were to write an opera it might come out like this one. Prokofiev's wacky, quirky Love of Three Oranges is a strange trip into something between a fairy tale, satire and farce. The L'Opera de Lyon's production gives this tale of the hypochodriac Prince and his triple-citrus curse a sort of "twenties chic" look. Despite its silliness there is at least one truly chilling moment when Fata Morgana, the witch fresh from Hell, gives the Prince the curse of the three oranges. Biting, acid music, a bizzare story and the most slapstick you've ever seen in an opera make this a totally unique and entertaining experience.
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