Entertainment · Books & Arts · 4 hrs ago
ENO stages Gluck’s Iphigénie en Tauride in French for the first time
English National Opera is staging Iphigénie en Tauride for the first time at the London Coliseum.
Gluck’s 1779 opera, based on a story by Euripides, follows Iphigénie, a priestess who must sacrifice strangers to the goddess Diana.
Her next intended victim may be her brother Orestes, whom she does not recognise.
The production uses a spare, clinical-looking setting, and the review praises the lead singers and orchestra, while finding the final battle unconvincing.
The opera is sung in French, despite ENO’s long-standing practice of performing in English, and the choice may make the story less direct for some audiences.
The production runs at the Coliseum until 14 November.
English National Opera is staging Christoph Willibald Gluck’s Iphigénie en Tauride for the first time.
The production is sung in French, despite ENO’s longstanding practice of performing opera in English.
Lyndsey Turner directs a staging set in a temple where Iphigénie and other priestesses sacrifice strangers to Diana.
The cast includes Christine Rice as Iphigénie, Jacques Imbrailo as Oreste and Nick Pritchard as Pylades.
The production is at the Coliseum in London until 14 November.
- Who
- English National Opera is staging the opera. The cast includes Christine Rice, Jacques Imbrailo and Nick Pritchard.
- What
- Gluck’s Iphigénie en Tauride is being performed at ENO for the first time, sung in French.
- When
- It is scheduled at the Coliseum until 14 November. The article was published on 8 November 2026.
- Where
- The Coliseum in London.
- Why
- Not stated
Supporters of French-language performance
Supporters of English-language performance
Language
Supporters of French-language performance
Some will argue that surtitles mean performing in French does not matter.
Supporters of English-language performance
The reviewer questions why ENO is performing in French when its remit has long been to sing opera in English.
Communication
Supporters of French-language performance
Some may accept the French-language performance with surtitles.
Supporters of English-language performance
Others may find the production more stylised and less directly communicative than a usual ENO show.
Gluck and librettist Guillard adapted the story of Iphigénie among the Taurians from Euripides.
Blackheath Halls staged Iphigénie as a community opera in English.
A lighting glitch briefly brought the performance to a halt during King Thoas’s aria.
The production is scheduled at the Coliseum in London.
- Composer
- Christoph Willibald Gluck
- Librettist
- Guillard
- Director
- Lyndsey Turner
- Language
- French
- Venue
- Coliseum, London
- Run
- Until 14 November
What people are saying
Human sacrifice first; ask questions later.
Why her and everyone else’s lines are in French, when ENO’s remit has long been to sing opera in English, is unclear
Either way, at such a critical time for the company’s future, why mess with its USP?