Jonathan Kent's spectacular production for Purcell's huge semi-opera is joyous, imaginative and witty. Because of its delicate lyricism and its course vulgarity, this Opera is the "quintessentially English piece" according to the stage director. Glyndebourne, is the "quintessentially English Opera house" and with its intimate auditorium, it provides the perfect setting for a drama combining theater, music and dance.

The original work was freely based on Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's dream, and the reference to the play is reasserted in this performance. Its complex structure and the raw music by Purcell are given a modern interpretation which preserves the original eccentricity. William Christie here explains how he arranged a simple two-voice score into a dynamic, subtle and sensual score for baroque orchestra.

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