Julius Caesar in Egypt by Händel, De (2023/2023), Dirigit per Damiano Michieletto,, Director musical Rubén Dubrovsky, Opernhaus, Leipzig, Germany

She has a difficult character - but a beautiful nose! This assessment of a little Gaul is just one of many legends surrounding the enchanting pharaoh. The fact that Cleopatra took the breath away of the greats of her time with her cornets has always been a gift for everyone in the entertainment business who had a nose for good material. Even if Handel's indestructible blockbuster bears the title of the Roman dictator, the Egyptian usually has the edge in this jewel of the operatic repertoire. She trills, charms, suffers, sobs and triumphs simply to kneel down. Of course, the grand seigneur of sound has emotions, The celebrated director Damiano Michieletto, who is returning to the Leipzig Opera with Giulio Cesare in Egitto after his colorful and glittering hit production The Rake's Progress, has already proven in London, Moscow, Milan and Salzburg that he has a good nose for gripping music theatre .