Georg Friedrich Händel

An exploration of opera in unconventional ways attempting to attract not just existing opera fans, but also those less familiar with the art form. The host guides the viewer to the places of origin of each opera, and explores the culture, history—and modern and current trends and how they apply to opera.

Bartłomiej, community elder and orator, must choose an appropriate successor, but finds difficulty in the aftermath of a local girl's tragic hit-and-run death. A community's pain reverberates through fractured relationships and the burden of funereal responsibility.

Abandoned at birth in the Greek mountains on a stormy night, Jon is taken in and adopted, without having known his father or mother. As a young man, he meets Iro, a warden in the prison where he is incarcerated after a deadly tragic accident. She seems to seek out his presence, takes care of him, records music for him. Jon’s eyesight begins to fail... From then on, for every loss he suffers, he will gain something in return. Thus, in spite of going blind, he will live his life more fully than ever.

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A petty thief works his way up the absurd hierarchy of Goto, an archipelago cut off from civilisation by a tumultuous earthquake. His dream is to possess Glossia, a stifled beauty trapped in a loveless marriage to a melancholic dictator.

Shot under extreme conditions and inspired by Mayan creation theory, the film contemplates the illusion of reality and the possibility of capturing for the camera something which is not there. It is about the mirages of nature—and the nature of mirage.

The film recounts the "First International Festival of Poets" held on the beach at Castelporziano in 1979, intertwining the event with symbolic and disturbing events in Italy in the late 1970s, such as the proximity to the site of Pasolini's murder and an oil spill offshore coinciding with the event.

The Royal Ballet and the Royal Opera collaborate in Wayne McGregor's production of Handel and Gay's classic opera, in which the nymph Galatea falls in love with a shepherd named Acis.

Early Rosa von Praunheim short film. Originally intended to be the ending of "Die Bettwurst".

Renée Fleming stars in the title role of one of Handel’s greatest dramas, seen in Stephen Wadsworth’s 2004 Met premiere production. Rodelinda is faced with an impossible dilemma: With her husband Bertarido believed dead, she either has to marry the despised Grimoaldo (the elegant Joseph Kaiser), who has usurped her husband’s throne, or see him murder her son. But Bertarido (leading countertenor Andreas Scholl) is alive and eventually reclaims both throne and wife—and makes peace with his enemies. Stephanie Blythe is marvelous as Eduige, Bertarido’s sister, who is betrothed to Grimoaldo but turns against him. Baroque authority Harry Bicket conducts.

Anton Ivanovich Voronov is a highly respected professor at the Moscow Conservatoire, who places the music of Bach above everything else and regards it as the ultimate yardstick by which other musical accomplishments must be measured. His daughter, Serafima, is an aspiring singer with great potential, and her father’s anger is aroused when she begins singing in the operetta composed by Aleksei Mukhin, thus abandoning what he considers the higher calling of opera. Mukhin’s work, however, demands a high level of ability from his soloist, and Anton Ivanovich is persuaded of the legitimacy of operetta as a musical genre when, in a dream, he is visited by Johann Sebastian Bach himself, who tells him that ‘people need all kinds of music’.

As the film opens, the career of George Frideric Handel is in tatters. Invited to Dublin to present the premiere of a new choral work, The Messiah, he can't find singers adequate for the job. A boy who steals a chicken runs into Mr. Handel. The boy's Mother was NOT an employee at the Cathedral, she cleaned and ironed shirts, so the mother "bribes" Mr. Handel with non-starched shirts to save her boy from being in jail. The choir sucks until the washer lady's son is discovered by Handel.

A family of British descent settled in the Russian countryside is investigating its grandfather's mysterious death. One small step for men, women, children, dogs, and pigs - one giant leap for humanity.

Positioned between opera and theatre, this powerfully accessible interpretation of Handel’s seminal work explores the drama and struggle of faith, showing a bereaved community whose grief at the loss of their leader is transformed into hope through a narrative of resurrection. Inspired by early performances of the work, which were staged in theatres and concert halls rather than churches, including its first performance at Bristol Old Vic in 1782, it is a rare treat for connoisseurs and enthusiasts alike.

This film was made entirely in Ghana and consists of documentary scenes and a fictitious story about a British engineer who wants to import microchips to Africa. But the reaction of the blacks to his plans to build a fully automatic plastic furniture factory surprises him. His faith in technocracy stands opposed to what they know about the environment. When the conflict has reached its climax, a spell is cast upon him... finally, he gives up... but his attitude toward Africa has changed for the better.

David McVicar’s production of Giulio Cesare manages to combine serious insight with entertainment, bringing Handel's masterpiece to life in a powerful, convincing and highly intelligent way. ln every line of the complex narrative the subtle nuances are apparent, reflecting perfectly the transparent and exquisite nature of Handel's musical expression. Filmed in High Definition and recorded in true surround sound, the outstanding singing of the all-star cast, led superbly by Sarah Connolly, and the vivid playing of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment under the energising baton of William Christie reveal the colour and dramatic character of Handel’s music in a most delightful manner.

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As the imperious title empress, mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato leads the Met premiere of Handel’s tale of deception and deceit. Harry Bicket conducts Sir David McVicar’s wry new production, which gives this Baroque black comedy a politically charged, modern updating.

Humourous interpretation of the poems and writings of Soviet dadaist Daniil Charms. These are organized into a sequence, suggesting a storyline, about a poor Russian poet who lives in Vienna, falls in love and has several bizarre adventures.