dick or no dick?
In what will probably stand in history as her most wrong-headed judgment call ever, on December 24 La Cieca concluded that George Steel would not accept an offer from the New York City Opera. Your doyenne cited two reasons for her position: first, that the job wouldn’t have much in the way of art to offer for a few years as the company struggled to stay alive financially and second, that dumping Dallas for New York so early on would be either a dick move or else perceived as a dick move, which in the broader view amounts to the same thing.
The first (finance vs. art) reason may or may not apply: La Cieca really is as clueless about the NYCO’s finances as, say, Susan Baker. So let’s put that one aside for the moment and move on reason #2.
Well, cher public, what do you think? Is Steel behaving like a dick, and if so, why? Let’s begin by remembering that La Cieca doesn’t know the guy and is not very familiar with his work. So your doyenne is not going to jump to any conclusions. However, it does seem that Steel’s recent “Two-Face” behavior might be explained three different ways:
(A) Steel (though he is not a dick) is naive and doesn’t realize that his behavior comes off dickish.
(B) Steel (though he is not a dick) realizes his behavior comes off dickish, but figures with time and good work in the new position, the dicky smell will wear off.
(C) Steel is a dick, and as such NYCO should prepare for a major and brutal ass-fucking.
At the moment, La Cieca is leaning toward (B), with maybe a soupçon of (A), giving Steel the benefit of the doubt because of the floppy hair and the rimless glasses. Of course, the real proof of nondickery is in the pudding (La Cieca expresses herself badly) so we will all be waiting with great interest to hear reports of Steel’s first meetings with NYCO staff tomorrow. (That’s a hint, folks; La Cieca is fishing for gossip, and as always her word is her bond that sources remain confidential.)
I agree about the “Platee.” Attending it was not only enjoyable, but the downtown dance and haute couture crowds drew an unusually young audience for it the night I attendee: they looked like the clientele on any given night at Florent, or some other hipster hangout.
“The Mother of Us All,” while a brilliant production, really didn’t sell at all. It also worked much better in the intimate theater at Glimmerglass, albeit with a mixed-bag cast, and didn’t transfer as well as I’d hoped into the State Theater.
And, please, NYCO: NO MORE JONATHAN MILLER. He is Exhibit A that it is possible to be a highly intelligent, witty individual, without possessing one iota of talent as a stage director.
alto: I am not the NY music scene insider you obviously are, but I hardly think it “beggars the imagination” to think that Joe Volpe, having run the largest opera company in the world for 16 years (42 years in total), might know just a little bit more about such things than George Steel whose been doing this since October. Yes, he was at the Miller (a lovely venue, with the top ticket price being $35), but it’s simply not the same thing. Does Volpe have one-tenth the artistic sensibility of Miller? Of course not, but that wasn’t my point.
I do, however, absolutely agree with you that it’s ludicrous to think that Steel never once managed to find himself at NYCO.
All-Knowing Seashell: Unfortunately, the Morris Orfeo at the Met demonstrated that lighting doesn’t strike twice.
Eons ago,a certain GD from a certain Southern State immediately jumped ship to go for greener pastures. That person is still there and the marriage is still ongoing.
I just hope that NYCO is REALLY a greener pasture for Mr. Steel.
He faces equal challenges in fund raising and developing a wider audience aside from balancing the budget and presenting an exciting and varied operatic repertoire in these two companies.
I don’t like to comment any pros or cons to his move but hopefully he has made a wiser decision for himself,his family and the company he will soon engage.
TT
Id love to comment but a couple of my cows just out of the fence out back so i gotta go round em up…
Please MrMyster…Dallas has more people that MOVED here that were actually BORN here… Ive spent a goodly amount of time in Santa Fe and while Dallas is hardly my favorite city in the world, Im alot happier here than I would be in Santa Fe I think.
Well, well, I thought High C’s had disappeared entirely. So nice for him to be back.
TIMMAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!
I just want to know how much the boy wonder pays Alto?
The NYCO needs a genius- someone who knows all about the art of opera and everything about voices. It’s clear the the administrators haven’t heard about Parterre- there are heaps of them in here
It might not make for the most intriguing libretto, but it’s completely possible for a talented person with good intentions to take on the role at Dallas, and then find himself face-to-face with the chance to lead the NYCO — a great thing for him, a great thing for the NYCO, a great thing for opera in the US. Being realistic about where the best alchemy is possible doesn’t make you a dick, and doesn’t mean you leave the previous company in a bad place if you handle it right. Folks in the know in Dallas tell me that’s exactly how it’s perceived there — without all the rancor and sour grapes implied in a bunch of the other posts. Boring and straightforward — oh well….