Handel Giulio Cesare in Egitto (Julius Caesar in Egypt or sometimes just Julius Caesar) opera to libretto by Nicola Francesco Haym. Directed 2021 by Keith Warner at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Bejun Mehta (Giulio Cesare), Louise Adler (Cleopatra), Christopher Dumaux (Tolomeo), Patricia Bardon (Cornelia), Jake Arditti (Sesto), Simon Bailey (Achilla), Konstantin Derri (Nireno), and Joni Österlund (Pompeo). Ivor Bolton conducts the Concentus Musicus Wien. Set and costume design by Ashley Martin-Davis; lighting design by Mark Jonathan; choreography by Mandy Demetriou; video design by David Haneke; co-stage director was Katharina Kastening; co-set designer was Jeremy Daker. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in Italian. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
For this review, we will be sure to call Handel’s opera by it’s compete name including the “in Egitto.” As a kind of centennial celebration, designer Ashley Martin-Davis invokes the Egyptian theater mania that erupted all over the United States after 1922 when Sid Grauman opened his iconic Egyptian Theater in Hollywood:
Soon there were Egyptian Theaters all over the county, and some of them have been restored as historical monuments. For example, next below is the the interior of Peery’s Egyptian Theater in Ogden, Utah. See the trailer to compare these splendid historical images to the theater created by Martin-Davis for director Keith Warner. With this production you get to see a movie and an opera at the same time!
Roger Pines goes all out in support of this title in his April 2023 review for Opera News (pages 50-51). He says the production “works brilliantly, sustaining the viewer’s attention in every moment of the opera’s three hours.” He notes the modern costumes “perfectly match each characterization.” He hears no weaknesses among the singers or in Bolton leading the Concetus Musicus Wien. Finally, Pines remembers he’s reviewing a recording, which he credits with “superb” video direction and sound.
Lindsay Kemp also writes a glowing review of this in the December 2022 Gramophone (page 97) where he opines that this show is a “worthy rival” to the famous Glyndebourne disc (2009) with Danielle de Niese’s portrayal of Cleo as showgirl. Kemp believes Warner’s overlay relates the story to “tensions between public image and private loves inherent in celebrity culture.” H’m. Kemp also praises Tiziano Mancini for an “efficient” video. It’s great for a Gramophone critic to remember this is a video!
With these strong reviews, this goes on our buy list for sure. It appears this Unitel Giulio Cesare in Egitto is now the only alternative in Blu-ray to the famous 2009 Opus Arte version with Danielle de Niese. The good reviews and the trailer suggest this is probably an A-grade title.
Here's a trailer from C Major:
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