E Susanna vien
La Cieca predicted a cast change earlier, and what do you know, so it came to pass! Soprano Lisette Oropesa will sing the Tuesday prima of the Met’s revival of Le nozze di Figaro and at least one more performance. She is jumping in for the enceinte Isabel Bayrakdarian. Ms. Oropesa is not only a member of the Met’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program but (even more impressively) she is La Cieca’s homegirl since she is a graduate of LSU in dear old Baton Rouge! It should be noted, however, that she and La Cieca matriculated in different centuries.
Meanwhile, in Chicago, Angela Gheorghiu has been fired from Lyric Opera’s production of La bohème which is scheduled to open Monday, October 1. Thundered General Director William Mason, “Miss Gheorghiu has missed 6 of 10 rehearsals, including the piano dress rehearsal and both staging rehearsals with the orchestra. She missed one of the most critical stage-orchestra rehearsals when she left the city for New York without permission, a direct violation of her contract.” La Gheorghiu was in fact spotted in the audience for the Met’s prima of Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette on Tuesday night.
The news is somewhat less dire for other members of the Gheorghiu famille. Those of you cher public who missed out on Roberto “Million Dollar Legs” Alagna‘s stylish Roméo this week may get another chance at seeing his collaboration with Anna Netrebko in the Gounod love story. La Cieca hears that Alagna will return in December to fill the “TBA” slots on the 8th, 12th and 15th, including the broadcast and HD telecast. Matthew Polenzani, La Cieca hears, will take over the role on December 20.
Why don’t American opera companies hire in the American soprano Ruth Ann Swenson to sing the roles that Eastern European/Slavic/Whatever Angela Georghiu is too lazy to rehearse. Or any other American soprano, for that matter. There are plenty who sing and look and act just as well and who would show up for rehearsals.
Uhh, xenophobic a bit?
that’s like asking why La Scala doesn’t ONLY hire Italian sopranos, or why Covent Garden doesn’t ONLY hire British sopranos? Opera is supposed to be an international experience. And for the record, there are plenty of American sopranos getting their dues. Look at Renee Fleming, and I do believe that Swenson has a role at a company coming up.