The Reviews Come Pouring In

As the journalists who have descended in Edinburgh put pen to paper, the reviews are coming in thick and fast. Here are some snippets of the reviews so far.
Dybbuk
The Times: ‘a tantalizing evening turns riveting…the acting is impeccable…a most striking start to the festival proper.’
The Metro: ‘Visually it is a triumph.’
The Scotsman: ‘Krzysztof Warlikowski’s production (of his adaptation) is intense, slow-burning, drenched in the language of theology and mysticism, but ultimately intensely rich and rewarding.’
The Herald: ‘It’s pulse…is set by Cielecka, a spellbinding blur of a presence in a haunted world.’
Time Out London: ‘Hauntingly powerful’

Tell-Tale Heart
The Guardian: ‘Niedermair performs it to perfection…Sickening then soothing, this is the stuff of fevered nightmares.’
The Metro: ‘an incredibly intense performance…’
The Scotsman: ‘the design and lighting – around a single human figure perched on a steep staircase – are a small revelation’
The Herald: ‘It’s as if all your fireside Halloweens have come at once…a deliciously wicked rendering of a dark-hearted flight if self-destructive fancy’.

Giselle
The Guardian: ‘Her arms and hands, even in moments of stillness, never stop dancing.’
The Herald: ‘Her act two defence…has greatness – of soul, and virtuoso technique – in every gesture, every step.’
The Scotsman: ‘Ananiashvili was the picture of youthful excitement – no mean feat at 45’

The Two Widows
The Times: ‘It’s an engrossing piece, and this colourful, unpretentious Scottish Opera staging by Tobias Hoheisal and Imogen Kogge…gets the balance about right between sincerity and flippant visual gags.’
The Herald: ‘With Smetana’s opera The Two Widows, which opened at the festival on Saturday night Scottish Opera has struck gold…Coming to Glasgow soon. Miss it not.’
The Daily Telegraph: ‘Jane Irwin sang superbly as the disconsolate widow, with Kate Valentine delightfully spirited as her pert opposite number, and able support from their problematic menfolk, Nicholas Folwell and David Pomeroy.’

The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny
The Daily Telegraph: ‘The Edinburgh Festival Chorus was immaculate, Hannah Gordon the most genteel of narrators.’
Edinburgh Evening News: ‘Maestro HK Gruber directed with a high level of enthusiasm that was raw and uncompromising.’
The Guardian: ‘Some were excellent, especially Anthony Dean Griffey, the only American, who sang Jim Mahoney in a powerful yet sweet tenor and got every word across.’

There is also a preview of Scottish National Theatre’s 365 in The Independent. The Herald also carried features on The Istanbul Music and Sema Group and Messiaen 100.
Nina Ananiashvili held a press conference yesterday. She expressed her opinions about the Russia-Georgia situation. The Scotsman published a picture of her on their front page. The Herald and The Times also used her comments in their stories. For more information about how this situation has affected the Festival 08 programme click here to see our press release.

We have a new audio feature up on our website. Hear what the audience had to say about Giselle at the Edinburgh playhouse last night by clicking here. And the first three of our Join The Critics reviews are also in. Visit the Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny page, the Tell-Tale Heart and The Two Widows pages to read them.