Otello at the Royal Opera House: Russell Thomas is Covent Garden’s first black male singer in the role
“Music director Antonio Pappano, sitting in the audience, will have taken a keen interest in the performances of not only Thomas but also Rustioni, his former assistant and potential successor. There was a lot to admire in the latter’s conducting: dramatic vibrancy alternating with lingering pathos and, in the jovial scene for Iago and Cassio, a mercurial touch worthy of Berlioz. He may not yet have quite the theatrical command that Pappano displayed when he conducted the production in 2017 and again in 2019, but there’s no doubt that some of the master’s magic has rubbed off on him.”
Evening Standard, Barry Millington