La Cenerentola

Published Tuesday 18 December 2007 at 10:20 by George Hall

Since it opened in 2000, Leiser and Caurier’s production of Rossini’s Cinderella, with immaculately stylish 1950s Italian visuals by their regular collaborators Christian Fenouillat, Agostino Cavalca and Christophe Forey, has become a Royal Opera classic. This is another classy revival and will give huge pleasure over the Christmas and New Year period.

Not every vocal gesture is perfectly in place, however. Making her Covent Garden debut as Cenerentola, Czech mezzo Magdalena Kozena struggles a bit in her final triumphant aria and is a little too serious elsewhere. Toby Spence cannot hit every top C fair and square but he’s so fluent and likeable as Prince Ramiro that it doesn’t matter. The Dandini, French baritone Stephane Degout, had a slightly vocal disposition on the first night, but once again his stage charm gets him through.

In Alessandro Corbelli’s Don Magnifico, however, voice and physical artistry are in perfect alignment. This is one of the best buffo performances you’ll ever see or hear. Lorenzo Regazzo makes a series of dignified and heart-warming interventions as Alidoro, Rossini’s male equivalent of the fairy godmother, and both the naughty stepsisters - Elena Xanthoudakis and Leah-Marian Jones - give full value and are huge fun.

Evelino Pido’s conducting could do with a touch more precision - not all of the marvellous ensembles are as crisp as they should be - but despite minor flaws this strong cast, sensational production and Rossini’s treasurable score provide a great evening’s entertainment.