Tchaikovsky—The Classic Ballets

Tchaikovsky—The Classic Ballets is a box set with 3 titles previously issued by Opus Arte as individual HDVDs. We have previously reviewed all of them, and all are available at full price. So follow our links here to learn more about each title:

Swan Lake with Marianela Nuñez and Thiago Soares, which we graded D.
The Nutcracker with Miyako Yoshida and Steven McRae, which we graded B.
The Sleeping Beauty with Alina Cojocaru and Federico Bonelli, which we graded B+.

I don't think Opus Arte has a "budget" brand. But by offering these 3 decent (but in every case overshadowed) recordings as a package, Opus Arte has a chance to reach folks interested in a lower price point. You do the math!

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What's New

Here's news about high-definition video disc ("HDVD") recordings of opera, ballet, classical music, plays, fine-art documentaries, and paintings. In the journal below are independent (and hard-to-find critical) reports on hundreds of HDVDs. Pick the best titles for your excelsisphere.

Feb 25. We have just completed one of our most ambitious reviews: Einstein on the Beach opera, the surreal 4 and 1/2 hour cult legend. Kudos, encomiums, and accolades to Opus Arte for giving us this authoritative and weirdly fascinating recording, which we grade A+. Absorbing and learning Einstein is uniquely challenging. We try to help out by providing aids not included in the keepcase materials: an accurate libretto and a list of segments in the opera with correct Opus Arte time stamps. Good luck!

We have some other good grades with an A for the recent Met The Pearl Fishers (Les pêcheurs de perles) and a B- for an earlier The Pearl Fishers from Naples. Also, we recently gave an A- for the new Don Quixote from the Vienna State Ballet.