A most pleasant 3 1/2 hours today spent listening to my new purchase of Handel's Alcina, with the same caste I heard in Poissy in September 2007 (the recording was made in Italy at around the same time). Time goes by pleasantly with Handel. Joyce DiDonato is magnificent as Alcina – she's a fine vocal actress as well as singer – and Maïte Beaumont is as appealing as she was on stage in Poissy as Ruggiero. A fortunate purchase and a good addition to my (pretty large) collection of Handel operas.