That elusive five-star night

At the end of the latest revival of Moshe Leiser’s and Patrice Caurier’s superb production of Il turco in Italia by Rossini, I thought we had attended a nearly perfect operatic performance. The directors told us a story, wrapped in the customarily brilliant sets of Christian Fenouillat and costumes of Agostino Cavalca; the singers generally did an excellent job, with Alessandro Corbelli being the icing on the cake; and the conductor Maurizio Benini could not be faulted. After the show, there were loud bravos for almost everyone and the audience, feeling elated, left the theatre doubtless planning a swift return to the Royal Opera House. Who wouldn’t be keen to see this most Mediterranean, spicy take on Rossini’s own version of Così fan tutte? As Don Geronio, Alessandro Corbelli oozed buffo pedigree which, in a way, made all the other…