A Winter's Journey

Verdi: Macbeth(it)

Star soprano Anna Netrebko created a sensation in her first Met performances as the malevolent Lady Macbeth, the central character in Verdi’s retelling of Shakespeare’s tragedy. She is joined by Željko Lucic, who brings dramatic intensity and vocal authority to the title role of the honest general driven to murder and deceit by his ambitious wife. René Pape is Banquo, Joseph Calleja is Macduff, and Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi presides over Adrian Noble’s atmospheric production.

Siegfried(de)

Siegfried is the third of the four operas that constitute Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung), by Richard Wagner.

Royal Opera House 2023/24: Madama Butterfly(en)

Cio-Cio-San, the young Japanese bride of American naval officer Lieutenant Pinkerton, finds her romantic idyll shattered when he deserts her shortly after their marriage. She lives in hope that one day he will return.

The Met — Il Trovatore(it)

Soprano Anna Netrebko appears in her highly anticipated Met role debut as Leonora, the tortured heroine who sacrifices her own life for the love of the Gypsy troubadour. Dmitri Hvorostovsky sings Count di Luna, Yonghoon Lee is Manrico in his Met role debut as the title character, Dolora Zajick sings her signature role of the gypsy Azucena, and Štefan Kocán is Ferrando. Marco Armiliato conducts Sir David McVicar’s Goya-inspired production.

The Metropolitan Opera: Rusalka(en)

Renée Fleming sings one of her signature roles, the title character in Dvořák’s sumptuously melodic Rusalka. The story of the opera, which is about a water spirit’s tragic romance with a human prince, is drawn from several folktale sources including Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid.” Star conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin leads a cast that also includes Piotr Beczala as the handsome Prince whom Rusalka yearns to love; Dolora Zajick as the cackling swamp witch Ježibaba; Emily Magee as the Foreign Princess, Rusalka’s rival; and John Relyea as Rusalka’s father, the Water Sprite.

Berlioz: La Damnation de Faust(fr)

Radiant mezzo-soprano Susan Graham and dashing Italian tenor Marcello Giordani are unlucky lovers in La Damnation de Faust, Hector Berlioz’s classic take on dancing with the devil.

Tchaikovsky: Iolanta / Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle(ru)

Valery Gergiev conducts Mariusz Trelinski’s thrilling new production of these rarely heard one-act operas. Anna Netrebko stars as the blind princess of the title in Tchaikovsky’s lyrical work, opposite Piotr Beczala as Vaudémont, the man who wins her love—and wakes her desire to be able to see. Nadja Michael and Mikhail Petrenko are Judith and Bluebeard in Bartók’s gripping psychological thriller about a woman discovering her new husband’s murderous past.

54(en)

Shane O'Shea, a Jersey boy with big dreams, crosses the river in hopes of finding another, more exciting life at Studio 54. When Steve Rubell, the mastermind behind the infamous disco plucks Shane from the sea of faces clamoring to get inside his club, Shane not only gets his foot in the door, but lands a coveted job behind the bar - and a front-row ticket to the most legendary party on the planet.

Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk(ru)

A young woman, married to a wealthy man, but miserably lonely; trapped within a world ruled with an iron fist. Katerina is driven by a lust for life and for love. Her husband, though, is impotent; her father-in-law a tyrant. No wonder, then, that she longs to free herself from this yoke. When Sergei starts work on the family estate, she sees in him a chance for salvation. However, their subsequent affair marks the beginning of a descent into crime.

The Phantom of the Opera(en)

The deformed Phantom who haunts the Paris Opera House causes murder and mayhem in an attempt to make the woman he loves a star.

Einstein on the Beach: The Changing Image of Opera(en)

The creative processes of avant-garde composer Philip Glass and progressive director/designer Robert Wilson are examined in this film. It documents their collaboration on this tradition breaking opera.

Swan Lake(en)

Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, a ballet in three acts, is present by the Ballet Company of the National Opera of Ukraine, with music provided by the Orchestra of the National Opera of Ukraine, conducted by Mykola Dyadura

André Rieu - Christmas in London(en)

Christmas is now more beautiful and cosy than ever! Experience Christmas in London, together with André Rieu. Decorated Christmas trees everywhere you look, beautifully lit streets, tempting Christmas window displays... Combine the unique London Christmas atmosphere with a magnificent Christmas concert by André Rieu, and you have all the ingredients for a lovely party in the dark December days. Together with fantastic soloists and his always joyful Johann Strauss orchestra, André Rieu provides a fabulous evening with the most beautiful and moving Christmas carols, but also with emotional songs such as Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah, The Holy City and the classic Concierto de Aranjuez. Christmas in London means an evening enjoying lovely music, beautiful costumes and plenty of London cosiness.

Cavalleria rusticana(it)

Franco Zeffirelli directs these two legendary La Scala productions telling tragic tales of jealousy. Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana features performances by Elena Obraztsova, Plácido Domingo, and Renato Bruson. Leoncavallo's I Pagliacci stars Teresa Stratas, Plácido Domingo, and Juan Pons. Both are conducted by George Pretre. This production of Pagliacci earned director Franco Zeffirelli the coveted Emmy as Best Director in the category of Classical Music Programming.

Love Affairs and Heartbreaks(el)

This first film of Cyprus' first director, Giorgios Filis, depicts music and dance customs in the form and style of a folk opera, with traditional Cypriot dances and songs. The film consists of a folkloric inventory based on the folk culture of Cyprus, as well as on similar ritual happenings. The narration and dialogue are entirely in the Cypriot dialect and are characterized by a rhetorical and poetic mood.

Peter Grimes(en)

Pavarotti, Birth of a Pop Star(fr)

Although he is unanimously credited with having democratised opera, making it accessible to the greatest number, focus is rarely put on the strategy he devised and implemented in order to carry out his actions, nor what his actions reveal of the man and artist, and of the resulting metamorphosis from opera singer to pop artist. Through this angle, this film sets out to pay tribute to the man who summed up his credo, obsession and life’s work, in the following way: “They led the public to believe that classical music belonged to a restricted elite. I was the way to prove to the world that was wrong.

Rossini: Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, 2017)(en)

This is Laurent Pelly’s Théâtre des Champs-Élysées staging of Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, with a cast featuring Florian Sempey as Figaro, Catherine Trottmann as Rosina, and Michele Angelini as Il Conte Almaviva. Jérémie Rhorer conducts Le Cercle de l-Harmonie.

The Beggar Student(en)

Simultaneously filmed English language version of a period operetta, in which a Polish noblewoman is romantically linked with a revolutionary student activist.

The Sound of Identity(en)

In the spotlight of global media coverage, the first transgender woman ever to perform as Don Giovanni in a professional opera, makes her historic debut in one of the reddest states in the U.S.

The Magnetic Man(fi)

A look at the life and music of Pekka Streng who died at the age of 26 in 1975.

One Lucky Man(en)

Lucky, a homeless man living in the UK, faced daily struggles to survive. Each day, he would sit on the streets, relying on the kindness of strangers to get by. One day, a kind-hearted young woman named Jessica stopped and gave him 50p, along with a warm smile. Her small gesture gave Lucky a glimmer of hope, and he began to dream of a better life. The next day, as Lucky returned to the streets, a wealthy businessman named Mukesh passed by with his security guard, Mark. Feeling sorry for Lucky, Mukesh decided to help in an unexpected way. Since he had no cash on hand, he bought Lucky a lottery ticket instead. Lucky accepted it with gratitude, never expecting what was to come. The following day, Lucky visited the shop to check his ticket. To his shock, the shopkeeper announced that he had won the jackpot. Overwhelmed with emotion, Lucky realized his life had just changed forever. As he celebrated, Mukesh and Mark walked into the shop for coffee,

I de lyse nætter(da)

If These Knishes Could Talk: The Story of the NY Accent(en)

The story of the New York accent, as told by New Yorkers.

Fight for Life(en)

Jerry Lewis plays an Ohio optometrist who has a six-year old daughter with epilepsy. He fights to get the FDA to approve a drug (at that time only available in England) for use in the U.S.

Santa Lucia(de)

The City is Red(hi)

Ashok Vatika is about a young window's quest for love and companionship in a conservative society where female desires are suppressed.

Yesterday Man(en)

A Politician's success through greenwashing ignites a power struggle in his environmental team between longtime employee and newcomer.

Ali vs Stevenson: The Greatest Fight That Never Was(en)

After winning his second Olympic gold medal at the 1976 Montreal games, Cuban boxer Teófilo Stevenson was at his peak. American promoters offered him $5 million to turn pro and challenge world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali. Stevenson refused the offer, asking "What is one million dollars compared to the love of eight million Cubans?"

Tum-pabi-dum(ru)

Verdwenen Dagen(nl)

In a virtual reality simu­la­tion that allows people to relive precious moments, a young woman is unin­ten­tion­ally confronted with deeply suppressed memo­ries of her first true but lost love.

Memories from the Eastern Front(xx)

A cinematic analysis of a photo album made by a Romanian Army unit in WW2.

Curiosity: Life of A Mars Rover(en)

The Last Taboo(de)

Hard to imagine, but true: According to current estimates, out of 500,000 active male football professionals worldwide, under ten (10) are openly homosexual. While homosexuality hardly plays a role in other areas of life today, the topic seems to be completely taboo in professional football. The feature-length documentary THE LAST TABOO lets those who broke exactly this taboo tell their very personal stories alongside Thomas Hitzlsperger. Like the British professional footballer Justin Fashanu (*1961 in London; † 1998 in London), who broke this taboo for the first time in 1990 and paid for it with his life. His niece Amal tells his story. Marcus Urban, on the other hand, was about to make the jump to the Bundesliga as a teenager and, by deciding to come out, he also went against his big dream. The stories of the US professional Collin Martin and the British player-coach Matt Morton, on the other hand, suggest that normality is not far away.

Diva Viva(cn)

Once upon the time on a small island named Taiwan, a neighborhood magistrate receives a secret message from space. 'The apocalypse is near...' the magistrate warns his people, however nobody seems to take his words seriously...

Calunga Maior(pt)

The writer Ana, recently orphaned, decides to venture down the alleys of memory and her broken relationship with her mother and grandmother.

Ode to Joy(zh)

An essential background for Qiu Jiongjiong’s recent A New Old Play, this dazzlingly playful short documentary remixes a Sichuan opera company’s dress rehearsal for its tribute to Qiu Fuxin, the director’s grandfather – who was a legendary opera performer of 'clown' comedic roles, and the real-life subject of A New Old Play. This exuberant celebration of a not-yet-lost past re-activates the memories of ageing, but irrepressibly vital, stage artists.