Search - Prokofiev: The Love for Three Oranges [Blu-ray] on Blu-ray

Adequate singing but a very dreary production

John Chandler | Melbourne, Australia | 04/16/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"My favourite performance of this delightful work is the 1982 Glyndebourne Festival release under Haitink. Fantastic sets and costumes and as light as a feather. Unfortunately the video and sound shows its age. This production is, to be blunt, dead dreary. A mixture of suits and pyjamas that looked as if they might have been borrowed from a church shop. The make up of the doctors was so bad one really wondered if they had had to do it themselves on the tram on the way to the performance! For a fantasy opera such as this, this is just unacceptable economy, especially at Blu ray prices. The sets are not much better and the involvement of the conductor in the "humour" just did not work for me. In many ways this is somewhat similar to the multi suited DVD release from Paris with better video and sound but even more unenterprising costumes and sets. Despite its age Haitink knocks both these performances for six! Dont waste your money."