Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #49327 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-02-21
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 118 minutes

Synopsis
Jacques Offenbach's operetta is a retelling of a mythical tale of Gods and mortals, and the battle raging between them. Married to Orpheus, Eurydice is embroiled in an affair with Aristaeus, really the God Pluto in disguise, who is so besotted with her that he lures her into the underworld for eternity. As Orpheus embarks on a mission to rescue her, Eurydice must choose between life with Pluto, an existence with Jupiter on Mount Olympus, or returning to her mortal life on Earth.

Customer Reviews

luvvies private party
What a disappointment! The cast are actors rather than singers, but this is no excuse. The trouble is that they are having such a great time hamming it up with each other that they have forgotten that the audience are the ones who should be entertained. Avoid this production - I wish I had!

An entertaining romp but not for the purists
This is exactly what one might expect from a production in English of Offenbach's most famous comic operetta, which uses actors as well as singers. It is hugely enjoyable as a romp and the cast, which contains a mixture of genuine singers of operetta and some notable actors with some vocal talent, gives a good enough account of the music not to let the production down. This is above all, however, a production which is about the fun and the characterisation, but in which the music becomes part of the show as in a musical, rather than the overriding focus, as in an opera. This is most certainly not a production for purists as the departure from the original French language and the variable vocal performances would not be at all acceptable. For an English speaking audience that wishes to enjoy the fun and the ludicrous nature of the plot, however, it is a very enjoyable production. For a quality French production that focuses on the true Offenbach operetta then the one from Paris with Natalie Dessay is probably the best option.

The finest Offenbach operettas are, however, like Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, strong enough to be subjected to a wide variety of production styles with different balances between vocal purity and humour. This particular performance of Orpheus is a good example of a production where the primary focus is on comedy, but there is still enough good quality vocal input to retain the true spirit of the original operetta. Most notably, the BBC Concert Orchestra give excellent musical support under the baton of Alexander Faris, who is a master of the music for comic operetta. The underlying musical quality of the production is therefore always on very secure ground. The cover and cast list focuses on the big name actors such as Dennis Quilley and Honor Blackman, but the vocal line-up includes such impeccable performers as Felicity Palmer (a great singer as well as an excellent actor), so there is very considerable vocal talent amongst the cast too.

Half Baked
Abysmally produced and directed. Cast and orchestra under rehearsed - at least I hope so - otherwise there is no excuse. George Walker should have stuck to baked potatoes.