Rarely have the critics’ and audience’s responses been more enthusiastic across the board than for the latest revival of Sir Richard Eyre’s production of La Traviata at the Royal Opera House in London. With a stellar cast featuring Renée Fleming, Joseph Calleja and Thomas Hampson under the baton of Maestro Antonio Pappano, the run has been triumphant for all involved.
The press has hailed Thomas Hampson’s Germont. The Stage described him as portraying the ideal Germont, initially distant and cold and later deeply remorseful, and complimented Hampson for his “rich, burnished and unfailingly elegant sound.” The Independent reported that he made “a gaunt and commanding father figure” and that the tension between him and Violetta “achieved an agonising intensity.” The Times said he managed to fashion “a chilling portrayal of a hypocritical moralist, and sung with terrific bite and resonance.” The Guardian wrote “Germont’s big second-act aria, Di Provenza, can seem anticlimactic; here it is a genuine emotional highlight.”

On June 30, audiences all over Europe can see the performance live from the Royal Opera House at 18:45 British time and 19:45 Central European time. In the UK, the production will be available as part of the BP Big Summer Screen, which are free open air events around the country. In many other European countries, the production will be available in movie theaters.