Fatal mia donna!
La Cieca has just heard that Cynthia Lawrence will sing Lady Macbeth on Tuesday, January 15 at the Met... and possibly more performances later in the season!
Labels: la cieca ci guarda la cieca ci vede, met
POSTED at
4:12 PM
13 Comments:
I've never heard her live but have thought of her as a Rosalinda, Musetta type of soprano, not quite a Lady Macbeth. Checking her web site, however, I see that she's done the Lady before, as well as Tosca, Amelia and other full blown soprano roles. I have a ticket for a May Macbeth. Wonder who my Lady will be.
I have a ticket for May 9--only time I'll be in New York during the opera's run--and I'd gladly take Lawrence over Gruber. Even though, as the previous commentator noted, she's mostly known (at the Met) for light soprano roles, her voice is large and lush, despite a lack of idiomatic Italian diction. Hell, I'd take anything over Gruber screeching and warbling her way through the Lady!
I feel bad for Gruber though. I just happened to read that article in Opera News a few years ago where she speaks frankly about her drug addiction and her struggle to overcome it. I have been thinking about her (though I don't know her personally)and hoping that she would not have relapse. I am completely ignorant of drug rehabilitation and all that. What I am expressing is a personal concern. She must feel very defeated right now. I hope she has kind friends who are there for her.
Has Gruber had a relapse?
Why doesn't the Met give Grace Bumbry a call if the need a Lady Macbeth? She still has plenty of voice left ... Just look at the YouTube video of her singing "Il est doux" at a German concert in November last year. A little shaky and a little short-breathed at times, but the notes are all there -- as, of course, is the charisma.
Why doesn't the Met give Grace Bumbry a call if the need a Lady Macbeth? She still has plenty of voice left ... Just look at the YouTube video of her singing "Il est doux" at a German concert in November last year. A little shaky and a little short-breathed at times, but the notes are all ther -- as, of course, is the charisma.
Why doesn't the Met give Grace Bumbry a call if the need a Lady Macbeth? She still has plenty of voice left ... Just look at the YouTube video of her singing "Il est doux" at a German concert in November last year. A little shaky and a little short-breathed at times, but the notes are all ther -- as, of course, is the charisma.
Cynthia Lawrence is a rock star.
In October, I heard Cynthia Lawrence sing Amelia in "Ballo" with Minnesota Opera. I only heard one of five performances.
She was not in good voice, and she was not a convincing Amelia. I thought she was almost painful to listen to.
I heard Ms Lawrence as Madama Butterfly about 5 seasons ago and she was incredible. Really, the best Butterfly I've heard live. Fabulous voice, wonderful with the text, and extremely moving. Any chance she'll be singing this coming Saturday as I'll be watching the performance live here in Toronto? Loved Romeo et Juliette last week (saw the repeat) and can now forgive Netrebko for most of her infelicities with the Waltz given that the performance, and singing, as a whole were of such a high order. Both she and Alagna were so completely into their roles, and as believable as 30/40-something year olds can be as the doomed pair. I heard Guleghina in one of the Sirius broadcasts, and I'm not so much looking forward to Saturday, though seeing her assumption of Lady as a whole with costumes/sets/acting etc., might improve things.
Miss Lawrence does not command a voice for the ages, but she is a thorough professional and a capable singer.
I have heard worthwhile and involving work from her as Cio-Cio-San, Dolly in SLY and Elettra ( in D.C.), in which she showed some weight of voice and fine coloratura, boding well for Lady M.
I wish her well, and may just have to go hear it.
Why is Gruber not singing? While I have been moved by Gruber's personal story, I have never been moved by a performance she has sung. I recall about 2 years ago, at Carnegie Hall, an Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performance of Verdi's Requiem, with Stephanie Blythe as the mezzo. Gruber certainly had an off night (that's the kind interpretation). Her Agnus Dei duet with Blythe was painful, and her Libera Me was a tough 10 minutes. I certainly felt liberated when the music stopped. I have a May ticket as well, and I had been secretly hoping that TBA would replace Gruber. (This includes a delirious fantasy that Zajick would drop by and sing the Lady.)
Ditto krunoslav. I actually saw her Lady Macbeth in Milwaukee a year ago or so. She commanded the stage--particularly in "La luce langue," which was probably her best aria of the three. In my opinion, she got more out of the line "Ai trapassati regnar non cale; a loro un requiem, l’eternità" than anyone else I've heard in the role / aria. She did a great job of acting obsessive-compulsive in "Una macchia," and though she took a breath right before it, the high D-flat was superb. (I do wish she would've blasted the note at the end of the first act, though; sadly, she didn't do the interpolation.) She didn't have the most finesse in the really dramatic moments, but she was still thrilling, stayed on pitch, and never approached filth.
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