Maria Ewing Movies

Featuring opera legends Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras, this production includes selections from La Boheme, Carmen, La Traviata, Madam Butterfly, The Barber of Seville, and Turandot, among others. Noted sopranos Raina Kabaivanska and Janet Baker also make appearances, as well as Cecilia Gasdia, Nicola Martinucci, Eva Marton, and Neil Shicoff. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

Videotaped live at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, England, this production of Bizet's classic opera plays strongly on the Spanish themes and heritage of the story, and it employs a wealth of Spanish talent, including director Nuria Espert, production designer Gerardo Vera, and choreographer Cristina Hoyos. Maria Ewing stars as the beautiful but dangerous temptress Carmen, while Luis Lima portrays Dan Jose, the man she leads astray. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Gioachino Rossini's comic opera masterpiece is performed before a live audience in this release featuring libretto by Cesere Sterbini and featuring music by The Glyndebourne Chorus and London Philharmonic Orchestra performing under the wand of conductor Sylvian Cambreling. John Rawnsley stars as the titular barber Figaro, and American soprano Maria Ewing performs the role of the bewitching Rosina. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Claudio Monteverdi's swan song, the tragic opera L'Incoronazione di Poppea, weaves its tale of the doomed, tempestuous affair between the Satanically immoral Emperor Nero and the bawdy, Machiavellian Poppea. Acclaimed theatrical director Peter Hall mounted L'Incoronazione at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera in 1984 and filmed the live stage production; the program first aired on the BBC, but at-home audiences can watch it again and again in this new release, which captures the magic of the original production. Maria Ewing interprets the title role, with Dennis Bailey as Nero, Cynthia Clarey as Octavia, and Robert Lloyd as Seneca. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi