Be among the First
Don’t forget to join La Cieca at 8:00 tonight for a live chat about the prima of The First Emperor at 8:00 p.m. Would any of La Cieca’s cher public care to give her a hand as moderators in the chatroom tonight? To serve, as it were, as Roger Alberto to her Vecchia Madelon? Well, if you’d like to help out, please drop La Cieca an email and she’ll give you the brief instructions necessary.
In preparation for tonight’s premiere of The First Emperor, I was reading the (lengthy) synopsis on the Met’s website last night.
It certainly scores high in the categories of wackiness and complexity. As anyone who has ever attempted to explain the plot of Trovatore in under an hour will agree, this is par for the course. And tonight we will be getting generals, slaves, homicide, suicide, and multiple ghosts (kind of like Macbeth meets Aida). More thrilling, however, in the final act, is what may be only the second theatrical instance of autoglossotomy when Jianli “bites off his own tongue and spits it after the emperor” (the other instance is Hieronymo in Kyd’s Spanish Tragedy). This poses some very interesting questions. As we all know, a fatal respiratory illness is no impediment whatsoever to singing (witness Mimi and Violetta); will the lack of a tongue be an equally minor handicap? We’ll see.
I’m a little dubious about the main betrayal of the opera, involving the composition of the national anthem. Switching a death warrant for a pardon at the last minute is a switcheroo worthy of high drama (+ 2 murders, 1 suicide and Vissi d’arte); but switching the words to the national anthem? I don’t know. Let’s reserve judgment, shall we.
My Applet window has been spinning around in vain for the past 35 minutes, so I suppose I’m unable to join the chat. But then, this first 35 minutes has included some of the ugliest sounds I’ve ever heard, so . . .
I think I’m going to wait to see the HD filmcast to listen.
I didn’t get a chance to listen..how large is Mentzer’s role? The poor girl has gotten NO press.
Mentzer’s role is very very small, sadly. But sad for all of them, really. It’s an unfortunate piece.
I presume you all had a few hearty cackles at this last night, but that flat voice anticipating the sung lines in a dull monotone was the prompter, right? I am listening to last the opera now and cannot believe what I am hearing.
I lasted about twenty minutes.
Any other thoughts of those who listened? I was thinking of seeing this at my local movie theatre, but if it’s THAT bad, maybe I’ll save my money…