Rinaldo

This film provides the most fun that you could ever hope to have watching a Handel opera. It also presents a continuous flow of show-stopping arias, sung by a top-quality cast. It is difficult to make an opera such as Rinaldo relevant to the new millennium. The director has to create a modern equivalent of the spectacle and excitement that accompanied the piece at its premiere in 1711. David Alden, the stage director of this production from Munich, accomplishes this brilliantly. This is a pleasant surprise to me in view of the fact that I slated his 1996 Ariodante for being traditional and unimaginative . The portents are not good as the curtain rises on a suburban living room with garish wallpaper, orange sofa and, inexplicably, a small pink tent. The cast, in modern dress are lounging around smoking cigarettes. But I need not worry; this production is as camp as a field full of pink tents. A quick look at the synopsis tells me that the loungers are, in fact, Christian crusaders who have come to Jerusalem to fight the Saracen King Argante. He is assisted by a woman in an attractive green cocktail dress who turns out to be the sorceress Armida.

The first act is something of a countertenor-fest, with no fewer than four swarthy and disconcertingly high-pitched men on stage. Readers of my opera reviews will know that I am no lover of countertenors. I prefer attractive contraltos in trousers singing the castrato roles, but the sheer beauty of these four voices eventually won me over and I was able uncross my legs and watch through the gaps between my fingers. David Daniels, in particular, gives a ravishing account of the title role of Rinaldo.

Noemi Nadelmann has a fine soprano voice and performs with gusto, particularly when riding a dragon. The stratospheric arias are given to Alimirena, Rinaldo's betrothed, who is abducted by Armida. Deborah York performs these beautifully, particularly Lascia ch'io pianga (let me weep) the opera's best-known aria. The two soprano voices go well together, particularly in the scene where the witch and the heroine exchange bodies. (Didn't Buffy the Vampire Slayer do that?). Egils Sinins, as Argante, has a sonorous voice which is particularly noticeable because he is the only member of the cast to make use of the bass clef. The Munich audience love every minute sounding as enthusiastic as an audience at La Scala or the Met. The biggest roar of approval comes for a stage effect that is stunningly simple. The battle between the Christians and Saracens is represented by a row of plaster statues placed across the entire length of the stage. A casual flick from Rinaldo causes them to topple like a row of dominos.

When Almirena tries to escape from Armida, she is confronted by a 20ft high plastic Bob the Builder who promptly drops his trousers and flashes at her. I do not understand the significance of this. Maybe it is David Alden's riposte to critics like me suggesting that he has a problem directing Handel: 'Can he fix it? Yes he can.'

Rinaldo has always been one of my favourite Handel works with some of his most ravishing music. This production of Rinaldo is not going to please everyone, the staging and production values have a more bold and camp approach than the traditional, sumptuous approach, but there are touches to the staging that are distracting(the giant bobble-head) the production is entertaining especially in the avant-garde-like second act and doesn't look cheap. Plus I may be wrong but as much as I do love the opera, I do think that it is not an easy opera to play straight. Technically, with the sound, picture and video quality, this Rinaldo is excellent. Musically, the orchestra play beautifully and don't sound too swamped and while a little too brisk on occasions the conducting is assured and musical throughout. Of the singing, David Daniels' Rinaldo is magnificent, a clear and beautiful voice and a very deeply-felt interpretation. Deborah York is a lovely Almirena, but the best in support are the gusty, seductive Armida of Noemi Naddelmann and the sonorous Argante of Eglis Silins. Daniel Taylor's countertenor is beautiful to listen to, though his costume is perplexing. Less effective are Axel Kohler who is clearly taxed by the difficult role of Eustazio and David Walker's Geoffredo, whose singing is not very well-supported and it is a very unsubtle performance with Geoffredo coming across as too much of a coward. In conclusion, bold, entertaining and mostly beautifully sung, but not for all tastes. 7.5/10 Bethany Cox

David Alden's audacious 2001 staging of Handel's "Rinaldo" brings the complex struggle between the Crusaders and the Saracens to vivid life, as he creates a surreal, out-of-proportion, pop-art world and builds the story off of a series of burlesque acts. For those unwilling to be open-minded and desperate to cling to a linear narrative complete with stodgy costumes, this is definitely not the one to watch (see some of the reviews below for confirmation of this myopic perspective). I imagine the flood of visual references in "Rinaldo" could be overwhelming for a one-time viewing experience. But that is certainly the beauty of DVD...the back arrow button can be your best friend, and repeated viewings enrich your experience of the production. As someone with a taste for the absurd, I think Alden's approach is insanely creative, but it still has a core of humanity around the legend that makes the whole production resonate. The sets and props are so much fun to watch and absorb that it bears use of the pause button intermittently.

The music is beautiful, classic Handel. Front and center is countertenor David Daniels, whose singing is impeccable throughout. His rendition of "Cara Sposa, Amante Cara, Dove Sei?" in Act I, is particularly moving. Dressed in a Dick Tracy-type suit for most of the opera, he also proves to be a deft comic actor willing to upend his romanticized hero mercilessly. This is a marked contrast to the heavily dramatic role of the martyred soldier he played in Handel's "Theodora" (also strongly recommended). The overall sound and picture transfer on the DVD is excellent. A nice extra is the accompanying one-hour documentary, "Handel the Entertainer", a helpful primer for those who want to understand not only the genesis of this production but also the history of the composer's music.