Tuesday’s lunchtime performance in the RBA was a preview of the upcoming Opera Atelier show All is Love which is essentially a remount of the February 2022 show that nobody much saw because it happened during a blizzard with most of downtown closed due to “trucker” activity.

The show is a mixed programme on the theme, unsurprisingly enough, of “love”.  It’s staged with scenes taken from opera and elsewhere and of course including Opera Atelier ballet.  It’s far from being just a baroque programme with music by Hahn and Debussy as well as Lully, Rameau, Handel etc.

Tuesday’s performance consisted of excerpts with Christopher Bagan at the piano.  The first was a piece he and Measha Brueggergoman-Lee created by “mashing up” Purcell’s “Sweeter than Roses” and Hahn’s “À Chloris”.  It’s rather beautiful and surprisingly effective.  Following this we got a demonstration of baroque dance to music by Couperin and Rameau.

Next was Danielle MacMillan with her Ruggiero boots on and accompanied by dancers in a really rather good account of “Mi lusinga” from Handel’s Alcina; properly dramatic and with excellent control.  There was music from Lully’s Armide, more dance and Jesse Blumberg finishing up splendidly with Purcell’s “Music for a While”.  All rather satisfying.

The full show runs at Koerner Hall from April 11th to 14th.  It will feature Tafelmusik in the pit and will include a fully staged Act 1 of Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande.  The exciting news is that we can also expect a full Pelléas et Mélisande on 19th century instruments in the not too distant future.

The photos used here are by Bruce Zinger and are taken from the 2022 show not Tuesday’s performance.