Francesco Cavalli : Il Giasone

   in Opera Now (Oct, 2012)
It works as well on DVD as it did in the theatre at Flemish Opera, though the close- up focus can undermine the organic effect of Julia Hansen’s nightmarishly intricate two-tier stage, with its classical personnel (Jason, Medea, etc) done up as fauns and satyrs capering about an archaeological dig. Mariame Clément’s endless jokiness is entirely in the absurdist Cavallian spirit, a great fantasy of fabulous detail and energy as Jason incompetently juggles two women and everyone else tries to deal with their own over-active libidos. Cavalli chucks in some proper heartbreak among the foolery, and plenty of meltingly sexy moments too. The story is great, the staging brilliant, the accompaniment …