Handel: Alcina (2015): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 2015, Handel: Alcina is a music film directed by Katie Mitchell, running about 187 minutes.

What it’s about. Philippe Jaroussky as Ruggiero is in thrall to Patricia Petibon as the sorceress Alcina in Katie Mitchell’s virtuosic production of Handel’s opera from the 2015 Aix-en-Provence Festival, described by Bachtrack as “a night of a thousand delights”. Conducted by Andrea Marcon, this was, in the words of Opera News, “musically … a performance of the highest festival level”. The production of Alcina, by the British director Katie Mitchell, was welcomed by the Financial Times as “meticulously executed …, rich in detail, consummately polished”. As the New York Times wrote: “It involves a huge sorcery machine for turning people into animals (or whatever). And Ms. Mitchell works magic of her own onstage, constantly showing the enchantresses Alcina and Morgana alternating between glamorous public personas and their ‘real life’, older, private selves …There are also bits of simulated sex, mingling genders and suggesting, among other things, inventive new ways to hit high notes.”

Who’s in it. Handel: Alcina stars Patricia Petibon as Alcina, Philippe Jaroussky as Ruggiero, Anna Prohaska as Morgana and Katarina Bradic as Bradamante, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 7.0/10, Handel: Alcina has been warmly received by audiences.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Handel: Alcina page.

If you liked it. Fans of Handel: Alcina tend to enjoy Whiplash, Coco, Green Book and The Legend of 1900.