Rating: 
Summary: Why quibble? It's wonderful.
Review: Forman isn't fooling anyone. He loves opera, loves to talk about it, and has discovered a perfect way to engage the non-professional enthusiast in an art form that often teeters on the absurd, while delivering the sublime. Yes, it lacks real depth and logic in his chapter on singers (some long dead, some still breathing), but that is only a small part of this enormous and terrifically satisfying undertaking. I refer to it again and again, for both information and a good laugh.
Rating: 
Summary: smarty pants falls flat
Review: Forman's wise-guy humor completely fails to amuse. The book is not merely bad; it irritates. Much better to go back to the old Victorola Book of the Opera. Sir Denis should be incarcerated.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth a look unless you're already a true Opera snob
Review: I'll add my voice to those who think this book is flawed, but generally pretty good and interesting. Actually, come to think of it, that's not very many voices - most reviews I've seen here are either ecstatic or viscious, and I don't agree with either.This book is, primarily, a catalogue of operas rated (Alpha-plus, Alpha, Beta, Gamma) according to how well sir Denis likes them, with synopses, a list of "watch for" moments, and a liberal dose of Sir Denis' opinions on everything from how certain arias should make you feel, to Wagner's temperament, to the relative number of snobs that are commonly found at the various opera houses around the world. There's no use getting snippy about how the ratings that are given (e.g., Falstaff gets a Beta, Don Carlo an Alpha-plus..???); except for the historical facts presented, everything else is very clearly intended to be his opinion, nothing more. The book is interesting, witty, and if you don't mind a little Anna Russell-type humor (as other's have said), quite an effective antidote to the masses of outrageously pretensious opera guides out there.
Besides some of his silly commentary, there are 2 things I don't like. First his method of selecting operas is intended to be objective - include only those works that have 3 or more recordings in DGs catalogue. Fair enough, but when all is said and done, I would much rather he include some popular favorites that didn't meet this criterion. Glaring omissons include Lohengrin, Tales of Hoffman, Peter Grimes, Massanet's Manon, Sampson et Dalila, Jenufa, and Gounod's Romeo et Juliet. These he left out in favor of things like 3penny opera, Verdi's Atilla and Vespiri, and Mozart's Iphigenia and Tito. Second, the cover claims that the guide covers recordings as well. It does not - there is nothing resembling a discography. a few pages listing best-selling and suggested recordings would have greatly increased the usefulness of this book.
That said, it's still worth a spot on your book shelf - any kind of useful opera analysis for beginners is going has to be subjective in the first place - why would you buy an opera guide if you didn't want someone's opinion on what you should go see or listen to to next? Why would you want a description and ranking of famous operas if you were already familiar with most of them? More importantly, why would you buy only one opera guide anyway?
Rating:
Summary: So he ISN'T Ernest Newman....
Review: I've dipped into rather than completely read this book -- and it IS made up of Sir Denis' opinions, but so what? So far, the only real quarrel -- and it's a big one -- was his ending comments on Tristan und Isolde, which I found to be egregiously out-of-line and clearly demonstrates that Sir Denis has little knowledge of love-death or mythologies. Other than that and so far, I'd recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Funny, helpful -- can be read through for sheer pleasure.
Review: If you've got opera tickets, spend the half hour before you go checking out the title in Forman's book. You'll laugh yourself silly, and enjoy the opera three times as much as you might have otherwise. Forman writes like an opera-besotted Bertie Wooster -- and knows whereof he speaks. This is a reference book you can read through, or dip into for pleasure. I got it out of the library, now I'm buying it to own and refer to whenever necessary. I wish I had it when I was in my early twenties, and just getting acquainted with the world of opera. It's at once appreciative of the form and de-mystifying. Reading Forman's comments about an opera, then getting the CD and reading them again, is a great way to learn an opera. If I had time, I read about, and listen to all 17 -- make it a summer project or something. I recommend this book
Rating:
Summary: The one where the author explains . . .
Review: Ingenious, imaginative, sometimes irreverent. Of all the books on opera I have read, this is the one I keep close at hand. It is subtle humor with full orchestra accompaniment, plus a brief yet comprehensive abstract of the the opera's libretto. Forman is a brilliant opera analyst. Now, when is volume II going to be published?
Rating:
Summary: Great, though irreverant, guide to opera
Review: Much more than just a collection of synopses of the great operas, A Night at the Opera provides a great starting point for learning about any major opera. First, you'll learn about how the opera came to be written and the story behind the story. Then, there's a full synopsis of the opera. Next is a musical description of the numbers, with a system of noting the highlights to watch out for. Finally, there's an essay by the author, Covent Garden's Denis Foreman and his rating. There's about five pages or so per opera, with longer ones getting much more (there's a whole introduction to The Ring). The style is breezy and colloquial. Foreman writes in a very tongue in cheek way that obviously some people don't get or like. Still, unless you despise dry English humor, it's a lot of fun. The synopses can get a little hard to follow with some of Foreman's jokes at times, however. Also, there's a large glossary in back with lengthy dissertations (again, very tongue in cheek), and composer/singer/conductor bios. All in all a great resource, even if you already have a book of opera synopsis.
Rating:
Summary: If you like opera, avoid this condescending book.
Review: Other reviewers have said some of this, but as one who does not suffer from a surfeit of reverance, I nevertheless found this an appalling work. If you like opera, but just want an Anna Russell style laugh, that's all right; but the author seems to want to do more. In fact, it's hard to know just what he is trying to do--the book isn't parody or a serious introduction to opera, but seems stuck somewhere in between, satisfying neither those who want comedy or those who want their opera straight up. If I were to try to introduce someone to Opera by using this book, they would think opera is silly and ridiculous. His comments such as "Idiot voices come from offstage" when he describes choral moments is an example of his general tone. Most people are trained to find opera silly, anyway, and this book will do nothing to change their minds. In fact, I wonder why the author wrote it at all. Since he was intimately involved in the world of opera, one wonders if it is a middle aged self hate book. I would recommend some of the Metropolitan Guides or even the old "Milton Cross" series for a better introduction to opera. If you just want to see the silly side of opera, well then, perhaps this book is your cup of tea. It certainly wasn't mine.
Rating:
Summary: Worth a look unless you're already a true Opera snob
Review: Sarcasm and intellect unite! (Oh, and there's opera too.) The genius that is Sir Denis Forman, former deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, has compiled a book of synopses and commentary on the world's most recognized operas. He is a marvelous writer with marvelous opinions. His dastardly witty remarks are priceless: I laugh out loud with each turn of the page, constantly going back to re-read my favorite segments with pure delight. I once was a mere opera enthusiast, wandering lonely as a cloud and listening to famous arias without a care in the world; I discovered this dazzling book and now opera is my greatest love. That's just me, of course. This book isn't going to magically make you feel passionately about opera if you don't already, nor is it going to inspire you to put on your tux and sit through an entire night at the Met without sort of dozing off until the big number jumps in. But, if opera interests you, I mean really interests you, then this book will make you hungry for all the fascinating plots and histories and news & gossip it has to offer. Forman's is the intellectual's guide through opera; instead of using the term "glossary," for example, he says "Words words words." Sometimes it reads like a novel, I swear it does. But there is one flaw: where does it talk about recordings? Am I blind? This is not a guide to opera recordings and those in league for actual recommendations should definitely look elsewhere. But it's definitely irreverent when it comes to Plots, Singers, Conductors and Composers. A great book for discussion and, in the end, the handiest and most enjoyable reference I own.
Rating:
Summary: A Prized Possession in my book collection
Review: Sarcasm and intellect unite! (Oh, and there's opera too.) The genius that is Sir Denis Forman, former deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, has compiled a book of synopses and commentary on the world's most recognized operas. He is a marvelous writer with marvelous opinions. His dastardly witty remarks are priceless: I laugh out loud with each turn of the page, constantly going back to re-read my favorite segments with pure delight. I once was a mere opera enthusiast, wandering lonely as a cloud and listening to famous arias without a care in the world; I discovered this dazzling book and now opera is my greatest love. That's just me, of course. This book isn't going to magically make you feel passionately about opera if you don't already, nor is it going to inspire you to put on your tux and sit through an entire night at the Met without sort of dozing off until the big number jumps in. But, if opera interests you, I mean really interests you, then this book will make you hungry for all the fascinating plots and histories and news & gossip it has to offer. Forman's is the intellectual's guide through opera; instead of using the term "glossary," for example, he says "Words words words." Sometimes it reads like a novel, I swear it does. But there is one flaw: where does it talk about recordings? Am I blind? This is not a guide to opera recordings and those in league for actual recommendations should definitely look elsewhere. But it's definitely irreverent when it comes to Plots, Singers, Conductors and Composers. A great book for discussion and, in the end, the handiest and most enjoyable reference I own.
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