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2 weeks ago | 
gramophone.co.uk | Susan Nickalls
Edward Jowle (Usher) and Chloe Harris (Counsel for the Plaintiff) in Trial by Jury | Credit: Mihaela Bodlovic. Despite the glitzy makeovers for Sullivan’s Trial by Jury and Lehár’s The Merry Widow, both old timers were completely overshadowed by a new kid on the block. Toby Hessions’ A Matter of Misconduct! was a musical triumph matched by Emma Jenkins’s razor-sharp libretto in this Scottish Opera and D’Oyly Carte Opera co-commission.
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1 month ago | 
scotsman.com | Susan Nickalls
SCO, SCO Chorus & Yeol Eum Son, Usher Hall, Edinburgh ★★★★Haydn’s Missa in angustiis (Mass for trouble times) sounded fresh off the page in this dynamic reading, with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra’s lively conductor Maxim Emelyanychev deploying his forces with aplomb. Typically of Haydn this piece is quirky, not least for the name it acquired at its premiere in 1798 on the day Lord Nelson defeated Napoleon - the Nelson Mass.
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Feb 17, 2025 | 
gramophone.co.uk | Susan Nickalls
⭐⭐⭐The cast of The Makropulos Affair at the Theatre Royal Glasgow (Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic) Despite a ravishing score, some fabulous singing and elegant sets, this new co-production between Scottish Opera and Welsh National Opera, directed by Olivia Fuchs, never quite gelled. For the performances in Cardiff,Leoš Janáček’s The Makropulos Affair was sung in Czech but was this deemed too challenging for audiences north of the border?
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Dec 1, 2024 | 
gramophone.co.uk | Susan Nickalls
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Otello at Teatro La Fenice (Photo: Michele Crosera)The wow factor is off the scale in Fabio Ceresa’s dazzling Zefferelli-esque production of Verdi’s Otello with Massimo Checchetto’s ornate sets and Claudia Pernigotti’s elegant costumes gilded to within an inch of their lives.
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Oct 9, 2024 | 
scotsman.com | Susan Nickalls
Commissioned by St Giles’ Cathedral as part of its 900th anniversary celebrations, this was a powerful coming-together of different artforms, writes Susan NickallsCathedral: Into Tomorrow, St Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh ★★★★Given the turbulent times we live in, the question posed in the strapline of this powerful performance of Cathedral: Into Tomorrowwas especially apt: what kind of Saint do we need in the world today?
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Aug 22, 2024 | 
gramophone.co.uk | Susan Nickalls
Hera Hysang-Park (Despina) gives a few wooing techniques to soldiers Huw Montague Rendall (Guglielmo) – left) and Josh Lovell (Ferrando) | Photo: Andrew PerryIt says a lot that the highlight of the EIF opera offering this year was an inspired concert/semi-staged performance. The talents put together forMozart and Da Ponte’s timeless opera buffa Così Fan Tuttewas a match made in heaven.
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Aug 19, 2024 | 
scotsman.com | Jim Gilchrist |Susan Nickalls |Fiona Shepherd |Carol Main
Our latest round-up of EIF music reviews includes three striking contemporary concertos, some exemplary baritone magic, an expressive solo recital, and a great American singer/songwriter paying tribute to one of her heroesRoyal Scottish National Orchestra ★★★★Usher Hall, EdinburghThese three very different contemporary concertos were given magnificent readings by the RSNO under the powerhouse of a conductor Elim Chan.
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Aug 19, 2024 | 
scotsman.com | Jim Gilchrist |Susan Nickalls |Fiona Shepherd
Our latest round-up of EIF music reviews includes three striking contemporary concertos, some exemplary baritone magic, and a great American singer/songwriter paying tribute to one of her heroesRoyal Scottish National Orchestra ★★★★Usher Hall, EdinburghThese three very different contemporary concertos were given magnificent readings by the RSNO under the powerhouse of a conductor Elim Chan.
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Aug 16, 2024 | 
scotsman.com | David Kettle |Susan Nickalls
Beanbags transform an early evening, youth-focused classical concert, but a ‘contemporary’ Marriage of Figaro feels out of step with the times. Reviews by David Kettle and Susan Nickalls. MUSICEuropean Union Youth Orchestra: Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra ****European Union Youth Orchestra: Don Quixote ****Usher HallBeanbags really come into their own with kids around.
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Aug 16, 2024 | 
scotsman.com | Joyce McMillan |David Kettle |Susan Nickalls
Our latest round-up of EIF theatre and music reviews includes a thrillingly radical and freshly insightful staging of one of the Bard’s signature plays, an uncomfortable beanbag experience elevated by an immaculate classical ensemble, an impressive range of musical moods, and a 17th century pub crawl Hamlet ★★★★★ Lyceum Theatre Until 17 August If I say that there’s a truly special theatre event on stage at the Lyceum Theatre this weekend, the wonderful actors of the Teatro la Plaza company,...
