Glyndebourne: Giacomo Puccini: La bohème

In Glyndebourne Festival Opera’s bold production by Floris Visser, this familiar story is transformed into a stark meditation on mortality and love.

In Glyndebourne Festival Opera’s bold new production by Floris Visser, this familiar story is transformed into a stark meditation on mortality and love. Set against a minimalist, hauntingly lit stage inspired by 1920s Paris, the design evokes a world on the brink of collapse, echoing existentialist and cinematic influences. A silent figure of Death, inspired by Bergman’s The Seventh Seal, shadows Mimì throughout, giving the opera an eerie, emotional intensity rarely seen in traditional stagings. This symbolic presence redefines key scenes, adding tragic urgency to the lovers’ brief happiness. Yaritza Véliz’s Mimì and Long Long’s Rodolfo bring nuance and vocal beauty to the roles, supported by a strong cast and a richly expressive orchestra under Jordan de Souza.

Genre Opera
Recording location Glyndebourne Festival
Production year 2022
Duration 116'
Production Company Maestro Broadcasting
Video format 4K/UHD
TV Director Rhodri Huw
Distribution TV EuroArts Music
English title of music work Puccini: La bohème, Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henry Murger
Composer Giacomo Puccini
Orchestra / Band The London Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Jordan de Souza
Stage Director Floris Visser
Sets Dieuweke Van Reij
Costumes Jon Morrell
Choreography by Pim Veulings
Light Design Alex Brok
Soloists Long Long (Rodolfo), Daniel Scofield (Marcello), Ivo Stanchev (Colline), Luthando Qave (Schaunard), Richard Suart (Benoît), Yaritza Véliz (Mimì), Christopher Lemmings (Death & Parpignol), and more