DVD 5295 ROBINSON CRUSOE (Offenbach)

I really love Offenbach so I am thrilled to be able to see a production of this rarely performed piece. The music is wonderful and the singing is excellent. I find the production laboured and lacking in style but I still enjoyed a great deal of it.I agree with all the previous comments regarding the sound quality and the general quality of the DVD. There is absolutely no other recorded presentation other than the CD recording in English so this will have to do for a while.

I basically agree with Perry, but I'd like to emphasize that the performance and production are excellent. The performers, by the way, are not as indicated on the website or the DVD - this is the Paris Opera conducted by Michel Tabachnik, according to the credits at the end. The picture is, unfortunately, not very good, and I didn't think the sound was quite worth 5 stars, but it was plenty good enough. I was quite delighted with this production, so despite the somewhat blurry picture, I'm giving it 5 stars. The performance runs about 100 minutes.

The most important thing about this DVD is that there is no choice. As far as I know this is the only one available, so if you want to see Robinson Crusoe, this is it. There are no subtitles and I rate it 5 for sound, but only 3 for the picture. The picture is blurred/unfocussed but fortunately the light is bright and there are mostly full colours so the recording is acceptable. It is a piece of fun, but quite different from many other Offenbach operetttas, in that the music seems a little more serious. I use a synopsis of the opera when watching, and had no trouble following the story. Am pleased I bought it, but will not watch it very often.