Lotfi Mansouri

Mamdooh is married to Wafa, and Mursi is married to Zizi, and they work together in an advertising company. They are famous for their frequent relationships with women. Wafa discovers that her husband Mamdooh is cheating on her with Nana, the advertising girl, during a party at the house of producer Adham. She returns to the house of her father Abdulfattah and her mother Hafizah and asks for a divorce from Mamdooh. Nafisah also tries to get closer to Mamdooh

This was a 1988 revival of a 1971 production that teamed Domingo (Vasco da Gama) and Verrett (Selika - both then very much in their prime) in Meyerbeer's discursive swan-song. Seventeen years on, they are more statuesque than sexy, but both give larger-than-life performances that contain moments of completely thrilling vocalism. The casting is very strong, with the exception of Justino Diaz's Nelusko, which has strong presence but not much vocal allure. As Inez, Vasco da Gama's fiancee and rival for Shirley Verrett, Ruth Ann Swneson sings with great beauty and has impressive stage presence, very much holding her own in the confrontation with Verrett in the last act. Domingo is refulgent of tone and dramatically convincing, and he and Verrett strike sparks. She really comes into her own in one of the most preposterous mad-scenes in all opera, where she is slowly poisoned by the scent of a giant tree, contriving to make this dramatically truthful and even moving.

Turn of the century Paris provides the glittering setting for this light hearted tale of political and amorous intrigue amidst the gaiety of Parisian high society.. First performed in Vienna in 1905 and here performed in the English version by Christopher Hassal.

King Henry VIII (Enrico VIII) of 16th century England falls in love with his queen's lady-in-waiting, Jane Seymour (Giovanna Seymour). The queen, Anne Boleyn (Anna Bolena) has a former lover, Lord Percy, whom Heny recalls from exile in order to tempt the queen into a compromising situation. When Anne rebuffs Lord Percy because she is married, Percy threatens to kill himself. However, Henry rushes into the room with an entourage and claims the couple has betrayed him. Henry sends Percy and Anne to jail and eventually to their death.

Lotfi Mansouri's spectacular last production as General Director of The San Francisco Opera with Yvonne Kenny making her debut in the title role, new dialogue specially commissioned from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Wendy Wasserstein and an original ballet to set the scene ‘Chez Maxime’ bringing fresh insight into Lehár's classic operetta. This production also features another world premiere, Njegus's song, ‘Quite Parisian’.