5/5 Masterful Performance
  by I. Martinez-Ybor (Miami, FL USA)
What a joy it is to review a performance such as this! Everything works and the opera emerges as the truly great masterpiece it is. Glyndebourne has a long history of doing well by Rossini from their early days. The great Italian conductor Vittorio Gui presided over celebrated revivals of Barbiere, Le Comte Ory, Cenerentola, L'Italiana..... Indeed if one were to list the "specialties" of the house, one can say that Glyndebourne serves Mozart and Rossini better than any other fare, and better than most other houses. This 2005 Production of Cenerentola is no exception.

Vladimir Jurowski, the young conductor, has a marked affinity for Rossini. His performance smiles and makes the London Philharmonic perform with a clarity, precision, and elasticity that unifies the performance and makes it quite thrilling. One is aware of the amount of rehearsal that must have gone into this production as voices and orchestra are so perfectly integrated into a musical whole...... no mere accompaniment here. In many ways it is Jurowsky's show.

Peter Hall sets the action in period and it works very well. As we all know, the magical elements of the Perrault tale have been eschewed, and what results is indeed, like Don Giovanni, a "dramma giocoso," profoundly humane and very funny in a wise, mature way. There is no room here for pratfalls and slapstick that so often marr Rossini performances. The sets are simple and elegant, and the costumes are subservient to the characters..... nothing exaggerated or gauche here.

The cast is uniformly outstanding: virtuosic singers, naturalistic actors, young and handsome. One cannot ask for more. Angelina (La Cenerentola) is the great Rumanian mezzo Ruxandra Donose; Don Ramiro (The Prince) is the remarkable young Russian coloratura tenor, Maxim Mironov.... he's still in his twenties. Luciano di Pascuale as Don Magnifico and Simone Alberghini as Dandini, play off each other superbly with subtle humor. The sisters are neither ugly nor charicatures...... they are spoilt kids caught in a charade they are destined to loose.

The blu ray presentation is superb. Colors are clearly defined, variations in hues are amazing. The sound is spectacular with air and separation between instruments like I have never heard in home video before.

In short, this is a great performance of a musical masterpiece by an excellent cast of a clever, elegant, witty, rich Peter Hall production, musically, brilliantly executed by Vladimir Jurowski whose opera work one would wish would become more common in the USA.

Cenerentola is probably Rossini's most congenial, singualrly humane, opera. Indeed it is a masterpiece, masterfully realized in this performance.

5/5 A great addition to my collection
  by S. Karnes
My music taste is far and wide from Classic Rock to Lincoln Park to Opera and this one is excellent. I had the CD of The Barber of Seville and I liked it but this opera is solid all the way through. This Blu Ray is excellent quality including crystal clear sound on my Polk 5.1 speakers originating from a PS3 with HDMI plumbing.

5/5 Another Rossini fun opera - better than The Barber
  by Mr. John A. Coulson (Australia)
This Glybourne production is highly enjoyable with the role of Don Magnifico sung by Luciano Di Pasquale an outstanding singing and comic success followed closely by the excellent performances of the two "Ugly" step sisters who are anything but ugly.
The title role of Cinderella sung by the very beautiful Ruxandra Donose was a bit of a disappointment to me. Perhaps her voice was deliberately kept low key as she was often outshone by the sisters although she did come out more strongly in the finale. Those with good surround sound systems will appreciate the dramatic storm scene in the last act and overall I have no quarrel with the audio quality. Very imaginative sets.
Rossini at his best and a great starter opera for those interested in coming to terms with the genre. Highly recommended.

5/5 Catch a Rising Star
  by J. Wright
Bravos are due once again to Opus Arte for another one of their fine Blu-ray opera DVDs. This production is traditional in style (no Euro trash) and entirely enchanting. The smallish stage at Glyndebourne is inventively used and the costumes are a delight. The Prima Donna encompasses a famously difficult role easily, though she -like anyone who essays this role - inevitably faces comparison to Cecilia Bartoli's Cenerentola. In the Buffo role of Don Magnifico, Luciano Di Pasquale nearly steals the show by milking every moment for maximum comic effect - imagine Jackie Gleason at the opera. For this reviewer, however, the real thrill came unexpectedly in the form of tenor Maxim Mironov, whose voice is perfectly placed throughout its range, clear as a bell, and sweetly vibrant with a little bit of fast vibrato. His role here is rather large and fiercely difficult, with extensive coloratura and repeated high notes, all delivered flawlessly. Tenors have always been a hobby of mine, and I have heard almost every one who has made a record in the past hundred years. I believe that Mironov could mount a challenge to Juan Diego Florez, the reigning Rossini tenor of our time. Unfortunately, his acting needs a little work, as he generally looked as if he had wandered onto the stage by accident. But, no matter - this is a great voice.

Finally, the stage direction includes one delightful innovation: Whenever one of Rossini's intricate and slightly weird ensembles occurs (these are one of the chief glories of his comedies), the lights dim and the actors begin to move in stylized and complex patterns, mirroring the music. This is a marvelous touch that serves to highlight the ensembles, rather as if they were happening in an alternate universe.

The DVD itself looks splendid - crisp, bright, and colorful, but the sound (I heard it in Stereo, not 5.1 surround) seemed a little shrill and lacking in bass. Conductor Jurowski, who is amassing a formidable resume and fine reviews, brought the full measure of clarity and high spirits so necessary to this score, although I wish he had allowed the orchestra to stop for applause after the arias. In any event, the Glyndebourne audience loved it, and so will you.


5/5 Beautiful
  by A. Lupu (Rochester, MN USA)
Great production. Great signing and great images. The production is centered in the human aspects of this known story, no magic at all, just diverse characters that Rossini knew how to portray with words and music. Bluray technology really puts you in the front raw of the theater.
I strongly recommend this Bluray disk to Rossini lovers and to be shown to youngsters that can understand the human aspects of the Cinderella story passed the magic of Disney.