Verdi demanded three qualities for his "fallen woman": looks, anima (soul) and a good stage presence. What he did not want was a glossy prima donna. The part broke convention not just histrionically, in its depiction of a contemporary prostitute, but also vocally. It needs a soprano agile enough to throw off the Act 1 coloratura, and strong enough to meet the dramatic requirements of Acts 2 and 3. That's asking a lot, and most sopranos fall short. So it was fascinating, at the Royal Opera's latest revival on Saturday, to come across Norah Amsellem. She has period looks, a pretty smile, a malleable physiognomy. She knows how to adapt her whole demeanour to Violetta's changing situation, so that the figure we behold on stage is not an opera singer but a human being with the power to disarm us emotionally. That may be a gift of acting, but it also reflects Amsellem's complete identification with the music. Her soprano is a bit one-dimensional, especially at the top, and she proved a surprisingly plain letter-reader. In all other set-pieces she had the theatre spellbound. "Dite alla giovine" and "Addio, del passato" were especially effective: Amsellem sang them in a beautifully controlled half-voice, stretching the tempo to its very limit. Some might call it self-indulgent; to me it sounded like the truth.

This is a superb revival. After 11 years Bob Crowley's spectacular settings still draw applause, but what counts is the care that has gone into casting and ensemble. Each of the smaller roles is made to tell, especially Gillian Knight's Annina. Charles Castronovo is the shyly appealing Alfredo, Gerald Finley an unusually sympathetic Germont. Renato Balsadonna's chorus just gets better and better. The linchpin is the conductor, Maurizio Benini. The orchestra sounds fired-up, Verdi's instrumentation is revealed in all its glory and the performance speaks with a common tongue. La traviata deserves no less.

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