L'Opéra des Opéras is exactly what it sounds like: a collection of arias fitted together into a little opera, complete with airs, choruses, and an overture and instrumental interludes. The practice is well-documented for 18th-century opera productions in various countries, and no less a figure than Handel undertook it several times. Cynics might say that these productions show how generic opera plots of the period could be: here you have a handsome prince, a charming princess, and a wicked witch who schemes to disrupt their ...
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L'Opéra des Opéras is exactly what it sounds like: a collection of arias fitted together into a little opera, complete with airs, choruses, and an overture and instrumental interludes. The practice is well-documented for 18th-century opera productions in various countries, and no less a figure than Handel undertook it several times. Cynics might say that these productions show how generic opera plots of the period could be: here you have a handsome prince, a charming princess, and a wicked witch who schemes to disrupt their relationship. Conductor Hervé Niquet, in a charming note, also points out the story's relationship to that of the U.S. Bewitched television series and even uses a photo of the original show for the album graphics. All of which suggests that he approaches the production in the proper spirit of fun, and indeed the production glitters with the bright sounds it would have had in a hypothetical 18th-century performance at the Royal Opera House at Versailles, where it was recorded....
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