Hunks in skimpy loincloths have long been a feature of productions of twentieth century opera, especially during the Christopher Keene era at New York City Opera. But you don’t often get to see much homoerotic action in bel canto works like Norma, more’s the pity.
[via Barihunks]
As everyone knows, practically nobody reads the Saturday edition of the New York Times even during the winter, much less on the first weekend of the summer when everyone who might be interested in giving money to an opera company is on their way to the Hamptons.
So it comes as no surprise that it is tomorrow’s edition of the Times that breaks the not very pleasant news that the 2008-2009 season at the New York City Opera will consist of exactly two performances. The budget for this (ahem) abbreviated stagione? Oh, about, say, $32 million.
By the way, did La Cieca mention that the NYCO orchestra will stay busy touring the boroughs with a program of Messiaen, Stravinsky, Foss, Reich and Varèse?
Coming up on the Fourth of July weekend: Anthony Tommasini examines Gérard Mortier‘s medical records.
Prince of Puppyliciousness Juan Diego Flórez goes classic this afternoon for Gluck’s Orphée et Eurydice broadcast live from Madrid at 2:00 PM EDT. Soprano Nicole Cabell is Eurydice and Jesus López Cobos conducts. To hear the broadcast, open the Radio Nacional de España player.
Not Tosca, of course, cher public — La Cieca could never say that about her dear, dear Tosca. But it does seem both shabby and shocking that the combined forces of The New York Philharmonic and Charles Zachary Bornstein, the Philharmonic’s Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence would not at the very least ask for a retake of the following video clip embedded in the NYP’s site. Wait patiently through the early platitudinizing for the final thirty seconds or so of the clip, when soprano (?) Courtenay Schowalter bravely attempts to sight-read the spiky intervals of that rarely-heard vocal work “Vissi d’arte” whilst Maestro Bornstein [...]
Member of the cher public Max writes: Don’t know if you’ve gotten reports on this yet, but Jonas Kaufmann‘s Cavaradossi at the Royal Opera (May 23) was singing like I haven’t heard since young Domingo (only Domingo never had that kind of ease on top). You could feel the waves of sound from his “Vittoria” but it was also so musical, so beautifully phrased with such beautiful clarity of diction and awesome command of dynamics. He’s German but looks like a Roman god. Gavanelli was a disgusting Scarpia (but effective in that way), Martina Serafin a surpisingly fiery and full-voiced [...]
The opera will be called Le convenienze ed incovenienze terrestriali. The first act aria will begin “Your tiny globe is frozen; let me warm it with my own.” More jokes to follow — cher public, don’t be shy.
In news that La Cieca is pretty sure has fallen far below Jeffrey Vanderveen‘s radar screen, a further casting rumor for next season’s Rienzi at Opera Orchestra of New York has emerged. As if Lauren Flanigan (Irene) were not superstar enough to supply name recognition for the company’s 47th production of the Wagner opus, the role of Adriano, written for the 19th century’s foremost singing actress Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient, will be sung here in New York by none other than … Eva Urbanová? Oh, what fun Mmes. Flanigan and Urbanová should have backstage, swapping stories about their triumphant Met performances as [...]
Legendary, lovely Evelyn Lear is a lady who knows what she wants. La Cieca hears that for a recent master class engagement, the veteran diva had only a few simple requirements: “Cups and water, and the water should not be iced; a mirror; and a box of Kleenex for when I make the students cry.”
ÂAs La Cieca first reported back in March, Jeffrey Vanderveen, recently split from IMG, will now head up Universal Music Classical Artists Management and Productions, a division “meant to provide management services for and produce live events for prominent classical musicians.” IMG has responded by filing filed suit against Vanderveen and other Universal honchos, claiming criminal conspiracy and theft, specifically the improper soliciation of certain clients who have made the move from IMG to Universal. Among these clients are Anna Netrebko, Elina Garanca, Karita Mattila, Joseph Calleja and Thomas Hampson. A story by Steve Smith in the New York Times [...]
La Cieca has to say that the funniest health code violation story she’s read in, well, days and days is the AP item entitled “NYC Health Department: Mice at Met Opera.” The hilarity begins in the very lede of the piece, which reads On-stage villains aren’t the only vermin at the Metropolitan Opera. Just as the headline promises, somewhere within the Met building were found mice or anyway “evidence of mice or live mice.” (La Cieca is not sure which of these possibilities is more likely to provoke her to behave like women standing on tables screaming in early sixties [...]
Cher Public