In a small city just above the heel of Italy’s boot, Carlo Broschi was born in 1705. Better known as Farinelli, his stage name, he became the greatest opera singer of the 18 th century, performing all ...

The free screening of the Golden Globe-winning biographical drama “Farinelli” will be followed by an expert panel discussion, serving as an prelude to OSB’s mainstage production of Handel’s “Caesar ...

Cecilia Bartoli isn't your average opera star. She doesn't sing many of the popular 19th century operas. Instead, she prefers to explore the dusty, little-known corners of the 18th century. Bartoli's ...

History needs to be streamlined and shaped for drama, but I’m not sure that Claire van Kampen’s liberties always hit the mark. We’re supposed to believe that the greatest singer of his age turned the ...

In a play about the healing power of song, who does the singing? Countertenor Iestyn Davies ponders the challenges of breathing life into the castrato singer Farinelli in Claire van Kampen’s play I’ve ...

With “operatic” now a synonym for excessive grandiosity, and the demanding diva de rigueur for any opera, it is easy to forget the primal, visceral nature of the early years of the art. To paraphrase ...

Le Roi S'Amuse: Mark Rylance finds both despair and comedy in his turn as the ailing King Philip V The story goes that King Philip V of Spain, suffering from severe mental and emotional instabilities, ...

Gerald Corbiau, director of arthouse hit Farinelli, is set to direct Le Diable Au Corps, an opera film that's being written expressly for the screen, rather than adapted from an existing opera. It's a ...

The belief that ‘In sweet music is such art, / Killing care and grief of heart / Fall asleep, or hearing, die’ (Shakespeare) is central to Claire van Kampen’s story of the relationship between King ...