Alcina at Hackney Empire, London

handel_small.jpgErica Jeal [The Guardian, 19 October 2005]
English Touring Opera has had success with Handel in recent years, but that doesn’t mean the composer’s operas travel well. Take Alcina: suggesting we are on an enchanted island ruled by the eponymous sorceress, who has a habit of turning discarded lovers into stones, waves and trees, is tricky with a lavish permanent set, let alone something that has to fit on a variety of stages and be dismantled before bedtime.