Least appealing headline of the week (so far)
"Opera's 'fat lady' is a Madison cash cow"
In other news: has anyone ever heard Natalie Bancroft sing opera? Ms. Bancroft is the scioness of the family who recently sold their controlling share in Dow Jones (and thus the Wall Street Journal) to Newscorp for a thousand million gazillion pounds or whatever it was. Anyway, in all the news stories, she is called "opera singer," but there's no sign of a review or cast listing with her name accessible to Google.
And here's a fun photo. No, it's not Vera Charles (though the lady does have a certain air of "What the hell have you got back there, reindeer?) And it's not Cruella DeVil. (Nice guess, though.)
In fact, it's Jane Henschel as Klytemnästra in the Deutsche Oper's new Elektra.
In other news: has anyone ever heard Natalie Bancroft sing opera? Ms. Bancroft is the scioness of the family who recently sold their controlling share in Dow Jones (and thus the Wall Street Journal) to Newscorp for a thousand million gazillion pounds or whatever it was. Anyway, in all the news stories, she is called "opera singer," but there's no sign of a review or cast listing with her name accessible to Google.
And here's a fun photo. No, it's not Vera Charles (though the lady does have a certain air of "What the hell have you got back there, reindeer?) And it's not Cruella DeVil. (Nice guess, though.)
In fact, it's Jane Henschel as Klytemnästra in the Deutsche Oper's new Elektra.
Labels: camp, festoonery
POSTED at
1:25 PM
13 Comments:
Regarding the whole "opera singer" incident, it's probably a result of the general public tacking the "opera singer" label on anyone who is studying singing. It makes a better headline than "Person who is studying music, but not actually sung anything of importance appointed to the board."
One envisions a young Natalie Schaefer...
I saw her in Munich as Clytemnestra and she sang the pants (!) of Gabrielle Schnaut's Elektra.
Actually, Jane Henshell is a very good mezzo. Wish she would come back to the Met, where she's sung the Nurse in Strauss' Die Frau.
Looks like the GLBT-loving Debbie Void to these eyes. Talk about camp! But what does it have to do with art?
I'm not sure if that look does anything for me as Clytemnestra, but she looks like she'd be a hoot as Herodias...
Per the stage directions Clytemnestra is supposed to be sallow but pale, completely festooned in ornaments and gems, and with large eyes "which cost her an unimaginable amount of effort to keep open." But I can't shake the feeling that Strauss and Hofmannsthal were going for creepy but regal (at least at first--it gives her somewhere to degenerate to as the scene builds up) instead of all-out camp, with her.
Yes, Michael, Henchel was a terrific Herodiade when I saw her last year in Paris.
LaCieca, just a small correction, it should be Henschel, i believe.
If this is what Cly looks like what have they got Aegiste(sic) looking like?
jane henschel is a great singer ... i saw her as clytemnestra, amme and erda. especially as amme she was impressive as she moved extremely well for a woman of her size - so much to the myth that all big singers are statuesque. and she seems a committed performer too.
Pontificating 'what does it have to do with art?' about one photograph of a costume is maybe the most philistine thing I ever heard.
She is a very hard worker and has a powerful well trained voice. If there's a flaw, its that the voice is not terribly recognisable or special. And she's big.
For a couple of seasons she was utility mezzo at the ROH, who put her into all the parts they could not easily cast. And she came out of it fine. Having been the previous Ring (the "stimulating" Jones) production's Fricka, she is now relaxing a a little bit as their Erda.
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