Poro, re dell' Indie 2003Edinburgh International Festival
Read more about the opera Poro, re dell' Indie
Brian McMaster did not introduce many rare Handel works to his programme of concert operas, But Poro was undoubtedly one of the rarest. The performance was long, partly due to the leisurely approach of Emmanuelle Haïm. Jane Irwin sang the title role, and must have found the style very different compared to her other Festival engagement, singing Waltraute and Second Norn in Scottish Opera's three Ring cycles. Christine Rice and Sarah Fox gave excellent accounts of the two female roles. However the highlight was the superb rendering of Alessandro by Toby Spence. He had joined the team at a late stage, following the withdrawal of Ian Bostridge, but his singing was quite immaculate. The outstanding highlight of the performance was his aria in the third act, a transposition to tenor pitch of the melody usually known as 'Dopo notte', the great last act aria from Ariodante.
