Handel's Alcina, Barbican

Handel’s opera Alcina was the hit of its 1735 debut season, and is now at the centre of his serious operatic repertoire, treasured for its emotional intensity and sumptuous melodic lines. This exciting new production, with Handel experts The English Concert, and a stellar cast including the Grammy-winning, golden-voiced Joyce DiDonato, and acclaimed mezzo Alice Coote, opens at the Barbican for a single night in October, before on a sparkling international tour to Madrid, Vienna, Paris and New York.

Based on the epic poem Orlando Furioso by the Italian Ariosto, Alcina is an enchantress who has built a beautiful palace on an island in order to lure her numerous lovers to destruction. At the start of Handel’s version, Alcina has captured the warrior Ruggiero, who has abandoned his betrothed, Bradamante. She arrived on the island, disguised as her brother, and with the assistance of her friend Melisso, and a magic ring, sets about breaking Alcina’s spell, and liberating her captives. There follows an intense and tangled tale of crossed love and mistaken identity, magic and liberation, as Alcina’s cruel empire of illusion is destroyed.  

DiDonato - enjoying the Barbican’s artist spotlight in 2014-15 - has already sung the title role, and stars in a highly-regarded recent recording. She is currently one of the undisputed stars of the contemporary operatic scene, in demand at the top venues worldwide, with a voice both liquid and coloratura that leaves critics gasping for superlatives. The rest of the cast, especially Alice Coote, playing Ruggiero, a mezzo-soprano of unrivalled musical intelligence, also looks delectable. But DiDonato will be the star. It’s a rare opportunity to see a singer at the peak of her career in one of the most exciting roles in the eighteenth-century repertoire. Book now.