March 2006

Strike three

A rather startling followup headline in the New York Times today: And is La Cieca the only one who was puzzled by the blurb for Luisa Miller in the Met’s Sunday Times ad? The cast for opening night is listed as Barbara Frittoli, Irina Mishura, Neil Shicoff, Carlos Alvarez, James Morris and Phillip Ens. But…

Sì, oltre ogni Urmana idea!

Mezzo-turned-soprano Violeta Urmana will sing her first Norma later this month. She will take on the Bellini heroine in concert form at Dresden’s Semper Oper beginning March 30, according to an article on Playbillarts.com. The good news from Boston is that James Levine “didn’t break anything” when he fell off the stage after a performance…

Is nothing sacred?

Which still-active soprano has not only begun teaching, but has quickly moved on to the next rung of the pedagological ladder, i.e., interstudio politics? It seems our heroine was invited to a student performance, only to find the teacher of the student in question also in attendance! Air was kissed for public consumption, but once…