Starting the centenary in style

Covent Garden's revival of Graham Vick's robust, magical Falstaff makes an excellent start to this year's Verdi centenary. There were some odd moments in Wednesday night's performance - disjointed ensembles and awkward speed changes - but enough delight to compensate. Paolo Gavanelli fits Falstaff's fat-suit more comfortably than Bryn Terfel and offsets his character's bathos with a touching pathos. Simon Keenlyside's Ford is the perfect uptight foil to Patricia Schuman's easy Mrs Ford, and Diana Montague and Bernadette Manca di Nissa make a lively Meg and Quickly. Twenty-five-year-old soprano Sally Matthews stepped in to replace Jenny Grahn and conveyed Nannetta's sweet nature without being winsome or irritating. It was a wonderful debut; her high notes had the purest shimmer and her acting was utterly convincing. Jeremy Sutcliffe's direction is energetic to a fault, but if you have to choose between singing planks of wood and meretricious acrobatics, I'd take the latter any day. A thoroughly enjoy

Covent Garden's revival of Graham Vick's robust, magical Falstaff makes an excellent start to this year's Verdi centenary. There were some odd moments in Wednesday night's performance - disjointed ensembles and awkward speed changes - but enough delight to compensate. Paolo Gavanelli fits Falstaff's fat-suit more comfortably than Bryn Terfel and offsets his character's bathos with a touching pathos. Simon Keenlyside's Ford is the perfect uptight foil to Patricia Schuman's easy Mrs Ford, and Diana Montague and Bernadette Manca di Nissa make a lively Meg and Quickly. Twenty-five-year-old soprano Sally Matthews stepped in to replace Jenny Grahn and conveyed Nannetta's sweet nature without being winsome or irritating. It was a wonderful debut; her high notes had the purest shimmer and her acting was utterly convincing. Jeremy Sutcliffe's direction is energetic to a fault, but if you have to choose between singing planks of wood and meretricious acrobatics, I'd take the latter any day. A thoroughly enjoyable evening where even the sets were (quite rightly) applauded.

'Falstaff': Royal Opera House, WC1(020 7304 4000) to 30 Jan