Yes, this is my favorite Handel opera!
Contrary to his Orlando Furioso last year in Paris, for his Orlando in Brussels --that was premiered only a week ago-- Pierre Audi did have a guiding idea, practically defined at the beginning of the show, and it actually works well* [So even Audi's tired style gets better when staged at La Monnaie/De Munt.] The only problem is the snail pace of the dramatic action but thankfully the soloists are very engaging in incarnating their respective roles that eventually made the evening a passionate experience. The sets and costumes by Christof Hetzer definitely help supporting the overall atmosphere too (Hetzer usually works with David Hermann).
