Faust

The oft-told tale of the scientist Faust, who sold his soul to the devil in exchange for an extra 24 years to live, is updated, apparently happening entirely in the confines of Faust's lab, which makes the Act 2 carnival hard to fathom. on the plus side, Jonas Kaufmann as Faust and Rene Pape as Mephistopheles are both in fine form here, especially in the devil's sardonic aria, "Vous qui faites l'endormie" (in other words, "put a ring on it").