--- product_id: 15276528 title: "Don Carlos [Blu-ray]" price: "SAR 129" currency: SAR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.com.sa/products/15276528-don-carlos-blu-ray store_origin: SA region: Saudi Arabia --- # Don Carlos [Blu-ray] **Price:** SAR 129 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Don Carlos [Blu-ray] - **How much does it cost?** SAR 129 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.com.sa](https://www.desertcart.com.sa/products/15276528-don-carlos-blu-ray) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Set in 16th-century France and Spain, Don Carlos tells of the political and amorous rivalry between King Philip II and his son, Don Carlos, over Elisabeth de Valois. Boasting an international cast in one of Verdi's most popular operas, Luc Bondy's moving production is the original French version restored to five acts. Review: Bravo for including Act I of Don Carlos! - This is a great production of Don Carlos, partly because it includes Act I which is so often omitted. Here we have Verdi's original French version of the opera. Without Act I, the opera doesn't come alive for me until the final two acts because it's not until then that all the characters feel like flesh and blood people. In Act I, we get Don Carlos and Elisabeth's touching love duet, followed by the heartbreaking choice on her part to marry Carlos' father. These scenes make the subsequent motivations and sufferings of the characters clear, starting in Act II with Don Carlos' and Rodrigue's Oath Duet (which had never fully made sense to me) and ending with Elisabeth's Act V aria in which she recalls the joyous moment she shared with Don Carlos at Fontainebleau (the setting of Act I). Karita Mattila, as Elisabeth, is the star of this production. Her voice is rich, strong, and expressive; and, as icing on the cake, it's mysteriously sweet. Her high pianissimo is breathtaking. She's perfection as Elisabeth, a tragic figure trying to do the right thing politically, but in secret mourning for her lost love and her lost country. Her final aria, "Toi qui sus le neant," is stunning. Roberto Alagna is unpredictable on DVD. His voice is not always beautiful to listen to. It can grate (one reviewer called it "leathery" and another "thin and tinny") and he has a tendency to turn sharp. But, on key or not, his voice is always expressive and he's totally committed to his characters onstage. I think he's terrific here, using both voice and acting ability to portray Don Carlos' weaknesses and tormented soul. As a bonus, he and Mattila have great onstage chemistry. The rest of the cast is strong too. There's not a weak link. As a result, we're treated to sterling displays of the major voice types: soprano and tenor (already discussed); mezzo-soprano (Waltraud Meier as Eboli); baritone (Thomas Hampson as Rodrigue); and bass (Jose van Dam as Phillip). This is a great production, one of the best operas I've seen on DVD. Review: Alagna's Great French Carlos - This French version features my favorite tenor, Alagna, who now owns the role. Mattila was in voice at the time and it works well though she towers over the short Alagna. The German mezzo, Meier acts well but is very unidiomatic in her singing. Van Dam is excellent Thomas Hampson great as always. Pappano knows the score like the back of his hand. In the French version we get to hear the fourth act's Prison scene great ensemble which Verdi took out in the Italian production. The production is curious and very spooky and effective. A Woodstock sculpter, Tricia Cline saw this DVD at my house and took a cue in costuming her figures in like manner. She sells well and even sold a Female Pope sculpture to Ellen DeGeneres in Calif. This is not the complete opera; that came later with Kaufman heading the cast in a not so great production. Kaufman is valued above Alagna at the Met because he also sings Wagner. In his complete DVD he seems to be trying to thicken his essentially lyric voice for the role...a habit which possibly has caused the nodule on his vocal cord in recent times. He is also short and tries to hide it, especially when standing next to Thomas Hampson. Take a look. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Contributor | Antonio Pappano, Donna Brown, Jose van Dam, José van Dam, Karita Mattila, Luc Bondy, Mark Amin, Peter M. Lenkov, Roberto Alagana, Roberto Alagna, Thomas Hampson, Waltraud Meier, Yves Andr Hubert Contributor Antonio Pappano, Donna Brown, Jose van Dam, José van Dam, Karita Mattila, Luc Bondy, Mark Amin, Peter M. Lenkov, Roberto Alagana, Roberto Alagna, Thomas Hampson, Waltraud Meier, Yves Andr Hubert See more | | Customer Reviews | 4.2 out of 5 stars 144 Reviews | | Format | Blu-ray, Classical, Multiple Formats, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen | | Genre | Classical / Opera & Vocal, Classical / Symphonies | | Language | French | | Runtime | 3 hours and 30 minutes | ## Images ![Don Carlos [Blu-ray] - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51FyMFSRIYL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Bravo for including Act I of Don Carlos! *by T***D on May 25, 2006* This is a great production of Don Carlos, partly because it includes Act I which is so often omitted. Here we have Verdi's original French version of the opera. Without Act I, the opera doesn't come alive for me until the final two acts because it's not until then that all the characters feel like flesh and blood people. In Act I, we get Don Carlos and Elisabeth's touching love duet, followed by the heartbreaking choice on her part to marry Carlos' father. These scenes make the subsequent motivations and sufferings of the characters clear, starting in Act II with Don Carlos' and Rodrigue's Oath Duet (which had never fully made sense to me) and ending with Elisabeth's Act V aria in which she recalls the joyous moment she shared with Don Carlos at Fontainebleau (the setting of Act I). Karita Mattila, as Elisabeth, is the star of this production. Her voice is rich, strong, and expressive; and, as icing on the cake, it's mysteriously sweet. Her high pianissimo is breathtaking. She's perfection as Elisabeth, a tragic figure trying to do the right thing politically, but in secret mourning for her lost love and her lost country. Her final aria, "Toi qui sus le neant," is stunning. Roberto Alagna is unpredictable on DVD. His voice is not always beautiful to listen to. It can grate (one reviewer called it "leathery" and another "thin and tinny") and he has a tendency to turn sharp. But, on key or not, his voice is always expressive and he's totally committed to his characters onstage. I think he's terrific here, using both voice and acting ability to portray Don Carlos' weaknesses and tormented soul. As a bonus, he and Mattila have great onstage chemistry. The rest of the cast is strong too. There's not a weak link. As a result, we're treated to sterling displays of the major voice types: soprano and tenor (already discussed); mezzo-soprano (Waltraud Meier as Eboli); baritone (Thomas Hampson as Rodrigue); and bass (Jose van Dam as Phillip). This is a great production, one of the best operas I've seen on DVD. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Alagna's Great French Carlos *by M***E on September 16, 2016* This French version features my favorite tenor, Alagna, who now owns the role. Mattila was in voice at the time and it works well though she towers over the short Alagna. The German mezzo, Meier acts well but is very unidiomatic in her singing. Van Dam is excellent Thomas Hampson great as always. Pappano knows the score like the back of his hand. In the French version we get to hear the fourth act's Prison scene great ensemble which Verdi took out in the Italian production. The production is curious and very spooky and effective. A Woodstock sculpter, Tricia Cline saw this DVD at my house and took a cue in costuming her figures in like manner. She sells well and even sold a Female Pope sculpture to Ellen DeGeneres in Calif. This is not the complete opera; that came later with Kaufman heading the cast in a not so great production. Kaufman is valued above Alagna at the Met because he also sings Wagner. In his complete DVD he seems to be trying to thicken his essentially lyric voice for the role...a habit which possibly has caused the nodule on his vocal cord in recent times. He is also short and tries to hide it, especially when standing next to Thomas Hampson. Take a look. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Stellar International Cast Restores Opera to Rightful Place *by J***P on July 6, 2000* Luc Bondy's production of Don Carlos by Giuseppe Verdi (sung in the original French) has a superb cast who not only sing beautifully but act very convincingly as well. Roberto Alagna takes the title role and shows us an ardent lover, a thwarted, passionate man who has to deal with his fiancee marrying his father for reasons of state, his best friend being sacrificed to the Spanish Inquisition for his loyalty, finding his father distant and solitary yet vulnerable to his religious advisor and trying to fend off the unwelcome advances of his father's mistress. Verdi lavished some of his most poignant and lyrical music on the score which contains intimate scenes of arias and duets,but also public spectacle and huge choruses as in the "Auto-da-fe" scene. Thomas Hampson shines as Don Carlos' best friend, Rodrigo who is caught up in the fight for freedom for one of Spain's conquered countries, Flanders. His character represents the "enlightened" man of his age so Verdi gives him some of the most moving tunes but really all the characters are allowed to express themselves in such a way as to engage our sympathy at various times. The women are equally strong with Karita Mattila as Elisabeth de Valois, the noble, young princess who must leave her beloved France to marry the father while loving the son, and Waltraud Meier as Princess Eboli, the king's mistress who is also attracted to Don Carlos. Jose Van Dam distinguishes himself as King Philip 11 with his elegaic aria on unrequited love. This opera deserves to be as well known as Rigoletto, Traviata and Trovatore as it contains so many memorable tunes and ensembles. Hopefully with this production, which is more complete than most, we will be able to appreciate the large, magnificent canvas that Verdi has translated into a most human story of private love and public duty. Excellent singing, heart-rending acting, fraught situations and glorious tunes ... who could want more? --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.com.sa/products/15276528-don-carlos-blu-ray](https://www.desertcart.com.sa/products/15276528-don-carlos-blu-ray) --- *Product available on Desertcart Saudi Arabia* *Store origin: SA* *Last updated: 2026-07-19*