Donizetti and Lucia Di Lammermoor have always been very special to me. This performance is on par with the 1983 production with Sutherland and Kraus and the 1967 Tokyo performance as one of the best Lucias available. Some of the picture quality is a little grainy, but to me that didn't detract from the performance, as the video directing and sound are very good.
The orchestra play with real drama, sensitivity and character, and the conducting from Lamberto Gardelli with gentility in the duets and power in the Mad scene is as good as I expected.This Lucia's costumes and sets have not only beauty but convey the mood of the opera very well.Staging is excellent. The Sextet has all the conflict and pathos that scene should do and the Mad scene is very haunting and eerie.
I couldn't fault the performances either. Of all the Lucias, Callas, Scotto and the Lucia of this production Katia Ricciarelli are the best singing actresses, though I also have to give it to Sutherland for technique and high notes and Gruberova and Anderson for managing to give the Mad scene its essential haunting, eerie sleep-walking-like quality.
Ricciarelli is outstanding here, vocally she has the ideal Bel Canto voice and there is no strain to be heard. Characterisation-wise, she draws us into this tragic character and it is such a gripping portrayal. Leo Nucci is a scheming, charismatic and sympathetic Enrico, and sings powerfully as always. Raimondo, Normanno, Arturo and Alice sing and act with few qualms.
The star is Jose Carreras. I have always liked his voice and his acting is growing on me every time I see him. His voice is powerful yet beautiful and delicate naturally, and of all the interpretations of the final scene I've seen recently, Carreras gets my vote as the most heart-breaking.
In conclusion, a wonderful Lucia and one of the best available. 10/10 Bethany Cox
