"Actor: Catherine Malfitano"

• Salome | DVD | (03/03/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £16.99

  A performance of Strauss's biblical 'Salome' at the Royal Opera House.

• Salome - Deutsche Oper Berlin | DVD | (30/01/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

  Richard Strauss's powerful and erotic one-act opera caused such a sensation when it was first performed in 1905 that it caused protests and was banned in several cities. In Petr Weigl's production for the Deutsche Opera Berlin filmed in 1990 Catherine Malfitano gives a suitably graphic portrayal of Salome a role which demand the utmost physical and emotional commitment throughout the complex vocal passages and choreographed scenes. Simon Estes is Jokannan and Herodias is sung by one of the greatest dramatic singers of the 20th century Leonie Rysanek. The conductor is Giuseppe Sinopoli.

• Mozart - La Clemenza Di Tito | DVD | (13/03/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £13.99

  Filmed in 1980 among the ruins of ancient Rome Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's stunning production marked the beginning of a renaissance for Mozart's late opera and continues to stand out as one of finest opera films of all time. James Levine conducts the Wiener Philharmoniker in this performance of Mozart's operatic marvel driven by imperial intrigue fury and forgiveness.

• Puccini: Tosca- In the Settings and at the Times of Tosca | Blu Ray | (03/06/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Stiffelio | DVD | (28/04/2008) from £12.87   |  Saving you £2.12 (16.47%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Once regarded as Verdi's lost opera because of early censorship and controversy, Stiffelio has now established its rightful place in Verdi's canon. In this 1993 recording from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Jose Carreras, as the Protestant minister whose faith is shattered when he discovers his wife's adulterous liaison with a family friend, leads a fine cast that includes Catherine Malfitano, Gregory Yurisich, Gwynne Howell and Robin Leggate under the baton of Edward Downes.

• Tosca - Puccini/Terfel/Malfitano/Chailly | DVD | (16/07/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £16.99

  Riccardo Chailly conducts the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and an outstanding cast in Nikolaus Lehnhoff's sensational staging of Puccini's great operatic thriller. Stars Catherine Malfitano as Tosca Bryn Terfel as Scarpia and Richard Margison as Cavaradossi. Bryn Terfel plays the 'tough guy' in contrast to many of his other stage characters which makes this Tosca immediately stand out as unusual from others. Outstanding orchestral performance with Riccardo Chailly conducting the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam.

• Weill: Aufsteig und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny | DVD | (30/01/2001) from £33.73   |  Saving you £-8.74 (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Kurt Weill's complex score reigns supreme in Peter Zadek's 1998 Salzburg Festival staging of The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, the collaboration with Brecht which became a target for Nazi insurrection on its 1930 premiere. The city itself is suggested by the attitudes and personalities of the singers rather than by Richard Peduzzi's Spartan sets. It's bleak stuff in many ways, not least in its vision of the human state: squaring up to corruption is a lonely and fatal business. But thanks to Weill's musical eclecticism, which ranges from barbershop to lieder, there are moments of intense beauty, not least in the duets between lumberjack Jimmy Mahoney and prostitute Jenny. There are, too, flashes which anticipate Weill's American future on Broadway. The lilting "Alabama Song", that gift to every would-be cabaret artist in search of a Lotte Lenya moment, works wonderfully as an ensemble piece. Despite occasional inaudibility, the singing is often breathtaking. Gwyneth Jones is a majestic Begbick, Catherine Maltifano's voluptuous and earthy Jenny also has a rarely seen sweetness and Jerry Hadley's Jimmy Mahoney is ultimately almost unbearably moving. Food for thought, indeed. On the DVD: The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny is presented in 16:9 picture format, but would have benefited from the scale of a widescreen treatment. It can be difficult to keep track of everything that's going on. The cavernous stage is probably responsible for the acoustics which sometimes allow the orchestra to overwhelm the singing, otherwise well served by the PCM stereo sound. There are no DVD extras but the excellent booklet and production notes are welcome.--Piers Ford

• Verdi: Stiffelio | DVD | (29/10/2001) from £3.06   |  Saving you £30.19 (1,677.22%)   |  RRP £31.99

  A performance of Verdi's three-act opera recorded live at The Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Celebrated tenor Carreras performs the title role as Verdi's cuckolded minister confronting his wife's adultery.