anna, continued
Here’s a brief video clip from Russian TV news on Anna Netrebko’s return to the operatic stage in Lucia di Lammermoor last night at the Mariinsky.
For Netrebko’s return, the Mariinsky imported a production of the Donizetti classic directed by John Doyle. It is unclear from early reports whether Netrebko was required to play the flute during the mad scene. The slightly more zaftig (more of her to love!) diva sings her first New York Lucia on February January 26 opposite Rolando Villazón and Mariusz Kwiecien .

The caption reads: Anna Netrebko leaves her family for the sake of the stage (!)
Okay, I couldn’t watch it because the Russian version of Real Player (which like most Russian technology is quite bare bones from the look of it and reverse engineered from pirated American software they got off the internet) just skips and jumps and won’t stream properly.
Trying putting it on pause for a few seconds and then back to play. It worked for me, at least.
Trying putting it on pause for a few seconds and then back to play.
Good description of Netrebko’s coloratura technique!
Here’s a YouTube with more performance footage.
La Cieca: You are a goddess. Thank you.
Well, based on what I hear in this short clip, it’s rather sloppy. It may be that she isn’t quite back on her form after her delivery. You do hear the E-flat at the end of the duet with her brother, which she definitely gets but it sounds hard for her to do it. She also sounds ever so slightly short winded and like she’s being careful. This is different from the video La Cieca posted previously, in which a very pregnant Anna sang “Heia in den Bergen” and sounded really good.
La Cieca I think you have that date wrong. Isn’t it sometime at the end of Jan instead of Feb?
I have a ticket to see her on Jan 29th, so I am hoping La Cieca’s dates are mixed up.
The note at the end of the Lucia/Enrico duet is a high D…..not an Eb.
I remain a fan of the basic sound, not how it is used.
The d is defiant and quite exciting. The rest has register breaks which show the need to recalibrate after birth. Happens to all new mothers. gelb must be having a fit about the weight. Cathy Nejiimy very pretty is the way she looks in certain clips. I think the twirling has got to stop. Learn the damn piece and twirl less. The colratura is sloppy and she is still a major talent, about as young as her newborn in terms of expression and style. Come on, Anna, time is a fast horse.
That was some fucked-up editing. Jesus, just show us the end of the mad scene with the high e-flat. Oh, does she even sing the it?
Well a D then, and that note should be solidly and EASILY in her voice no matter what! So if it was hard for her, yikes.
She is chunky now, but still pretty. God knows she looks better than most of the other women who sing this.
Caliber’s: Fortunately the costumes for the Lucia at the Met (even though they were designed for Dessay) should be flattering for a more voluptuous figure — tight bodices and full skirts. The decollete wedding dress might need a little extra fabric added to the sleeves. I would hope also that Netrebko plays Lucia here with her own dark hair instead of that rather cheesy looking auburn wig.
Which strapping baritone will have the honor of carrying her up the staircase at the end of the Mad Scene?
I’m not gonna lie here she has gained a bit of weight but honestly those costmes just made it worse lets hope the met’s will fare better
Does anybody know if Anna is breast-feeding Tiago? Lactating hormones promote weight gain and water retention. In a generation back, when nursing wasn’t popular, hormonal blocking of lactation made it easier for women to lose weight after giving birth. It will be easier for Anna to lose weight when she stops nursing. I don’t think she has gain more than 15 pounds, which is not that bad.
She’s put on some weight but she’s hardly a heffer. She remains a perfectly reasonable size.
She is though, essentially, a lyric soprano singing a heavy coloratura role. I guess that since Callas and Sutherland, all young(ish) prima donnas with a superiority complex feel that these are the roles prima donnas do. I quite enjoy her singing, but I wish she’d stick to her own fach.
Anna Bolena might not be so bad though, since it relies a lot less on clean coloratura. Sure, I can think of 25 operas I’d rather hear her do before Anna Bolena, but she’ll sing it better than she sings Lucia.
breast-feeding helps you loose weight! everyone knows that. and what business of yours is it anyway what she chooses to do with her body and with her child?
“Does anybody know if Anna is breast-feeding Tiago?”
None of your, mine, or anyone else’s business! She has a family now, leave them in privacy.
And “What” above is right, “Doctor Papas”, as everyone knows, breastfeeding takes up a ton of calories, hormones or no.