Gifts often have a mystic habit of turning on the receiver.
It is to be hoped this show does not take a further bite out of the limited resources of the Cairo Opera. After all, this Don Pasquale is likely to be the last opera show in the house of this departing century. Everyone is vociferous as to its great comic appeal but there are many who find it a bore, held upright by only a few nice tunes. It is a special show-case for bright edgy voices which are no longer found, even in Italy. Its transfer to the larger space of the Opera is neither.