Organization

Admin

Théâtre des Champs-Elysées

Royal Ballet and Opera

Conductor

Conductor (+3)

Emmanuelle Haïm

Stage director

Oliver Mears

Set designer

Set designer (+1)

Annemarie Woods

Costume designer

Choreographer

Choreographer (+1)

Sarah Fahie

Lighting designer

Lighting designer (+2)

Fabiana Piccioli

Soprano (+2)

Pretty Yende

Semele

Tenor (+2)

Ben Bliss

Jupiter

Mezzo-soprano (+4)

Alice Coote

Juno

Bass (+4)

Brindley Sherratt

Cadmus

Somnus

Mezzo-soprano (+2)

Niamh O'Sullivan

Countertenor (+5)

Carlo Vistoli

Athamas

Soprano

Marianna Hovhannisyan

Iris

Chorusmaster

Composer (+3)

Richard Wilberforce

Chorus

Chœur du Concert d'Astrée

Orchestra

Le Concert d'Astrée

Semele is the fullest expression of the oratorio form which is a feature of Handel’s last compositions. In the early 1740s, Italian opera in London fell out of fashion just as Handel was embarking on his final works. He composed Saul, L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, The Messiah, and Samson. Semele was his last oratorio in 1744 and was performed as written, without any staging or set, using the large choruses typical of the genre. However, a leopard does not change its spots, and everything about Semele shrieks opera, from the tragi-comic libretto and clever succession of scenes to the virtuosity of the arias for soloists. This is an opera that dare not speak its name, but which upholds the legacy of a lifetime of composition.
Emmanuelle Haïm is well-versed in Handel, a composer whose works she has conducted for many years. In fact, she made her conducting debut here in January 2002 with a Handel programme (Apollo e Dafne and Il Delirio amoroso). This was followed by performances Europe-wide of Dixit Dominus, Tamerlano, Theodora, Il Trionfo, The Messiah, Charpentier, Lully, and even Mozart, (including a recent Semele at the Lille Opera House). Alice Coote’s Juno will make life difficult for lovers Ben Bliss (Jupiter) and Semele (Pretty Yende) right up until the final dénouement. A masterclass in vocal quality to be savoured wholeheartedly

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