The Cunning Little Vixen

Just watched this animated featurette of Leos Janacek's opera as directed by Geoff Dunbar on YouTube. It's mainly about a female fox who as a child gets taken from her mother to this man's house. Three months later as an adult, she escapes but not before killing all the chickens that her master and his wife had raised. Back in the forest, she meets a male fox and falls for him. After she gets pregnant, he agrees to marry her...I'll stop right there and say this was a pretty touching story of this lady fox and her adventures despite her brutal nature concerning other animals. Both the music and the voices chosen to verbalize the story are wonderfully played throughout. And Dunbar's animation provide some of the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen in an animated project. So with all that said, I highly recommend The Cunning Little Vixen.

The Cunning Little Vixen is perhaps my favourite Janacek opera, though I am very fond of Jenufa as well. I knew I had to see this animated featurette, and I wasn't disappointed. For a live production of the opera, I recommend the wonderful 1995 performance with Thomas Allen as the Forrester. A quarter of the opera is cut here, but considering it's a featurette and an animated one at that that wasn't a problem. The basic story feel, enchanting and moving, is there still. The music is still gorgeous, helped by the beautiful orchestral playing and Kent Nagano's sensitive and suitably spacious reading. Christine Buffle has a lovely and youthful-sounding voice and is endearing in the title role, while Grant Doyle sings with such warmth and richness as the Forrester. All the characters have colourful personalities, which immediately makes them identifiable to anybody whatever age they are. The visuals are another outstanding asset, the backgrounds especially are really luscious and do have that enchanting look in the colours. Overall, a really fantastic animated Cunning Little Vixen. 10/10 Bethany Cox

It is a good adaptation of the opera by Leos Janacek; the plot is decent, the animation is nice, and the music is excellent; I recommend it if you like opera or musicals.