In the opening bars of the overture, Hansel and Gretel climb into bed and fall asleep. Conductor Kǎrin Hendrickson, making her OHP debut, brings a light touch to Humperdinck’s sweeping orchestration, played by the London Sinfonia. Denser Wagnerian echoes – Engelbert was a great admirer of his fellow German – are lightened with the folk tunes that the composer drew on heavily. With softened brass and woodwind capturing the atmosphere of the forest, violins shimmer to evoke the early morning.
April Koyejo-Audiger as the Sandman. Photo: Ali Wright
Adelheid Wette, Humperdinck’s sister, who wrote the libretto, stays generally close to the Grimm Brothers’ original tale of the two children lost in the wood and the witch who lures them into a gingerbread cottage, vividly staged here by director John Wilkie.
Hungry, home alone and bored with housework, Gretel teaches Hansel how to dance. Mezzo-soprano Charlotte Badham, as Hansel, back at Holland Park for the third year running, and soprano Laura Lolita Perešivana, as Gretel, back for her second time, are two young singers who are going places. The intertwining of their voices is utterly enchanting, and they catch both the affection and squabbling of siblings.
When their mother, sung by a wonderfully angry Meeta Raval, returns, she scolds them and sends them into the forest to collect strawberries. As she laments both the empty table and her hasty action, her broom-maker husband Peter, baritone Paul Carey-Jones, an OHP regular, cycles home, singing lustily in his rich, deep voice. 
Charlotte Bowden as the Dew Fairy. Photo: Ali Wright
He has brought food, but his good cheer is short-lived. When he hears that Hansel and Gretel have been sent to the woods where an evil witch turns children into gingerbread, the couple hurry off to find them. Again, the acting perfectly captures the interaction of husband and wife.
Hansel and Gretel lose their way, but not their voices: Gretel soars when Hansel crowns her the woodland queen, and their evening prayer duet is magical. Lulled to sleep by the Sandman, sung by April Koyejo-Audiger, another name to watch, they dream of being reunited with their parents, accompanied by Humperdinck’s sweeping melodies – and by the birds singing in the park outside
The Dew Fairy – rising soprano Charlotte Bowden – cycles on in a fabulously ornate headdress (designs by Neil Irish) and wakes the children. 
Eleanor Dennis as The Witch. Photo: Ali Wright
They are drawn towards a gingerbread house seen through the trees. The sweet tones of mezzo-soprano Eleanor Dennis as the waiting witch win the audience over but they don’t fool the children. Her glittering gown falls away to reveal a black military-style uniform as she imprisons the children, a sinister echo as she prepares an oven for her victims. But the children have other plans...
Evil defeated, joy prevails ... you can’t beat a fairy tale ending.
Hansel and Gretel is sung in German with English surtitles. Remaining performances are on 14,16, 18, 21 and 23 June
| What | Hansel and Gretel, Opera Holland Park review |
| Where | Opera Holland Park, Stable Yard, Holland Park, London , W8 6LU | MAP |
| Nearest tube | High Street Kensington (underground) |
| When |
10 Jun 23 – 23 Jun 23, Five evening performances; one at 2pm on Sun 18 June |
| Price | £24-£150 |
| Website | Click here for information and booking |