nyco roundup
The people have spoken, and so from henceforth George Steel will be known by his, whatchamacallit, you know, his sobriquet, which (per your decree) is “The Man of Steel.”
La Cieca thought she should review at least a couple of the biggest challenges facing The Man of Steel as he and the NYCO begin a restoration project that, as the saying goes, makes Hoover Dam look like an egg cup.
First and foremost, of course, is giving the heave-ho to Susan L. Baker, preferably after guilting her into flinging a couple million bucks to the company strings-free. Since (as La Cieca hears) Steel was not Baker’s choice to ascend the throne, she should reasonably be readying her exit even as we speak. Prediction: an announced resignation at the same time Steel offcially starts the job in February.Â
Now the hard part. In every medium sized or larger opera company, there are a number of department heads who take on specialized tasks: you might think of them as the worker bees of the hive, whereas the General Director is more of a queen. (Though this is not always true; in fact, La Cieca hears whispers that one big advantage Steel has with the current NYCO board is that he is a smooth pimp who loves the pussy. Or, to put it in a less litigation-friendly way, rumor has it that the board were quietly hoping for a nice straight family man type for the job. But let us not go too far afield, or for that matter, let us not talk about pussy this early in the morning. Ewww.)
To continue. Among these positions that are both generally understood as necessary and currently vacant at the New York City Opera are Chief Financial Officer and Artistic Administrator. The latter of these two positions is particularly crucial because over the last decade the AA at NYCO has been Robin Thompson, who actually expanded the role to include broader artistic decisions that strictly speaking should have been made by Paul Kellogg. (In his defense, Kellogg was a very busy man during that era, what with lobbying the city to make NYCO a gift of a brand new opera house and keeping his bowtie collection neatly arranged.)
So these are two of the about five major vacancies that need to be filled at NYCO like, immediately, and these are exactly the type of job that tend to require a many-month search for a right fit, which of course includes finding someone who is actually available.
Oh, and did I mention Development Director? That spot is vacant at NYCO right now too, and obviously these next couple of seasons are going to be all about finding new sources of philanthropy. La Cieca is told that one of the selling points offered the board about the selection of Gerard Mortier lo those many months ago was that the big name would inspire a veritable flood of new benefactors to the company, thus funding his extravagant plans. Sadly (if you look at it that way), Mortier turned out to be pretty much a dud as a cash cow; according to La Cieca’s sources, donations to the company stayed more or less flat after the Mortier announcement.
Now, it may well be that The Man of Steel can charm the gold teeth out of a dowager or two; he has a reputation as a charismatic guy. But keep in mind that every hour spent fundraising is an hour spent away from creation and administration, which until now anyway have seemed like Steel’s strong suits.
Before taking a break, La Cieca will repeat a rumor she heard about either the first NYCO season or maybe the one after that. The Man of Steel, one hears, has posited the idea of “theme seasons” — you know, “in their various ways each of these operas is about the changing role of women in the Faust legend,” that kind of thing. One season theme title La Cieca has heard is “The Perfume of French Opera,” which would make for a great tie-in with Susan Graham‘s fragrance launch.
I’d be more frightened of Cory Ellison finding a place in Steel’s heart.
While Cori certainly has no business running an opera company (no business skills, no fund raising background etc.) she is pretty damn knowledgeable… Quanto, curious as to your fear of Ms. Ellison…
Why is it necessary to dump on a very competent and knowledgeable dramaturg (Ms Ellison, who has shown no ambitions I am aware of to RUN a company) just to prove one’s ability to make scattershot snarky comments?
Jay (#22)—I was in the house, and Blythe was most definitely struggling. You had to admire her professionalism in getting through it, but the singing itself was not terribly enjoyable, full of awkward register breaks and not always fully in tune. She seemed to be having particular problems with the passagio into head voice—that upper-middle area where, it turns out, much of this role lies—producing there an underpowered, unfocused sound. This is not what one expects from this usually dependable singer, so I have to imagine she was still suffering from the effects of a cold.
Starry, this is a NYCO Roundup so why not talk about Mr. Thompson and his work for NYCO? After all, we can’t talk about Mr. Steel and his work for NYCO because he hasn’t done any yet.
So far all we get from the Steel fan club is assertions about his genius. If you have some links to reviews of his work I’d like to see them. I think we are all nervous and skeptical about what is going to happen to NYCO. I predict it is over and that makes me very sad, sadder than I can express.
I was a fan of NYCO long before I heard of Robin Thompson. Later, as I learned more about NYCO (from this site and others) I learned that Mr. Thompson and his vision was largely responsible for what I was seeing. Eventually someone I know who works in the biz (not at NYCO but with NYCO) pointed him out to me at the NYS Theater and I even hung around once and heard him give congratulatory speeches to the cast. I tried to speak to him but couldn’t think of anything to say. He is very handsome, it’s true, and I am not. I guess I felt intimidated. Or intimmaydated
What I can say now is I have spent many nights at the NYS Theater simply enchanted and amazed by different productions, the lightness and the wit, the freshness and frankly, the singing. You’ll think about Butterfly differently after you see NYCO’s Butterfly (if they do it again). You really feel the isolation and unhappiness of this sweet young woman who is ill-used by everyone around her. The minute she comes over the hill it’s as if her suicide is pre-ordained. “Go back!” you will want to shout. That is what makes tragedy tragedy!
A “Boheme†where the Mimi actually convinces you she is shy (like I am) can move me deeply. I have sat in the dark and cried quietly when she dies. Sorry, it’s true.
I will never forget “Vanessa” when the audience was so enthralled they DID NOT GET UP for the second intermission! I don’t think I will see that kind of engagement with the audience again in my life. I think the reviews for “A and C” last week speak for themselves.
I’m sorry Starry, I’m just a fan, a pretty dumb one at that. I even got Sharpless and Pinkerton confused in a post a while back. Everyone else here probably knows more than I do. Certainly the real Robin Thompson does.
I’m not rich and I’m pretty New York bound. I’ve been to the Met and the City Opera a lot over many years and though I respect the Met, admire Volpe, Gelb and Mrs. B for what they have done there; I never lost my heart for a Met production the way I have many times at NYCO.
Like a lot of people I’m angry we are losing NYCO; angry at the board for not recognizing what they have and throwing it away not once (Mortier) but twice (Steel).
I’m angry at myself too because I just wanted to know what was going to happen to Robin Thompson and hoped that maybe he would be somewhere where I could see his work again. I didn’t mean to make him a target for sneers and innuendoes. Seeing as so many people who know him have spoken up for his good manners and humility I feel doubly bad.
I don’t think, at least from what I have read here from people who really know him, he deserves that kind of treatment. He has brought me many many hours of joy and sadness, but you know, the opera kind of sadness that is sort of a happiness in being able to feel something that deeply and truly.
Yeah I’ve been hard on Steel, but I didn’t label him as “dickish” that was our hostess. I think I even advised you once or twice to tell him that opera was a small world and he should clean up his act. This was even before he left Dallas and when his appointment to NYCO was a very remote possibility.
Everything I have posted here has been related to me by people who should know. I don’t sit around trying to think up stories about a man who is handed a fully functioning Opera company, a new Frank Gehry designed opera house and three pre-programmed seasons to learn the ropes yet cannot be bothered to attend performances.
If I were in his position you would have to pry me out of the theater. I would have spent my daytime hours talking to every working member of the company (ushers, bartenders, and cleaners included) asking them what could be done to make Dallas even better. I would have spent my night time hours making pilgrimages to the big donors thanking them for what they have done for Dallas, for culture and for me. Mr. Steel chose a different course and suffered the consequences.
You can say those who are not convinced of Steel’s abilities are ignorant but even the NY Times expressed questions about his experience and ability to handle Dallas when he was appointed. The President of the Board even acknowledged the validity of that skepticism in the article. What happened in Dallas seemed to validate that skepticism. Whether Baker is aware of these stories I do not know. I expect she is beyond caring at this point.
You want to talk about Steel fine. Let’s talk. What the heck is “The Perfume of French Opera?†Why wasn’t he at the second performance of “A and C?” And, who does he think is going to come up with the millions and millions of dollars necessary to pay for the upcoming season? Discuss! And also, go to hell!
Hmm, almost a thousand words and yet none of them reveal any thing but a rehash of previous rants. Something must have touched a nerve. One hopes some day you might have something beyond unprovable rumors of suspect provenance or (apparently deep-seated) personal resentments to add. Oh, and you lost your temper, which doesn’t indicate a convincing argument, now, does it?
From the Dallas paper:
“Several members of the company expressed amazement that Steel hardly stuck his head into rehearsals for The Marriage of Figaro and never attended a complete performance. They were also surprised when he didn’t put in an appearance at some gatherings with patrons. He sometimes seemed more interested in promoting himself as a conductor than in actually running the opera company.”
Starry Vere – I don’t see any rants here. For people who have worked with NYCO, Robin Thompson is much admired. This might not sit well with you, but it is the case. There are very few within the business who would have a bad word to day about him. It is a pity that he is no longer at NYCO. That is all.
I hope that Steel does well at NYCO. I don’t know that this ia a position he has been in before. It will be interesting to see how he does.
Nothing against RT at all, was only wondering, given the frequent juxtaposition of GS bashing and RT praising on the thread, if there was sentiment that RT should have been chosen as GD.
No rants? Well, at least a few hyperventilating screeds.
I’m not GS bashing, just judging the odds of his succeeding against the information available. If there is more information out there, let’s have it.
I asked you to provide us with some evidence of his genius in the form of favorable reviews of operas he has produced in the past. Not forthcoming.
I asked you why he wasn’t at “A and C” on Friday; a bad choice given the word from Dallas. No answer.
I asked you what “The Perfume of French Opera” means and you can’t seem to explain it.
I’ve also asked you to lighten up on Robin Thompson because he is an artist who has moved me. I gave you specific examples of the productions at NYCO that I thought were exceptional. I also refferred you to reviews of “A and C” which I believe were universally favorable.
I’d love to hear from you, or anyone, some anecdotes about Steel’s genius at producing operas. What did he produce up there at the Miller? Did you see any of it? I tried googling “George Steel Opera Miller Theater” and found this http://www.operatoday.com/content/2008/09/oresteia_at_mil.php which seems to be more of a dance piece (only one singer). And this http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/13/arts/dance/13stee.html?scp=5&sq=Miller%20Theater&st=cse which is an article about how much he loves ballet! So much so that he had a sprung floor put into the Miller, not so good for opera I think.
I also found this http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/02/26/arts/music/26lost.html?sq=Lost%20highway&st=cse&adxnnl=1&scp=5&adxnnlx=1232636466-W0IMomkd36whiFxPJWxPyw about a production of a new opera at the Miller that was imported from Oberlin. Is this the only opera he has produced? It was the only one I could find.
I also tried to find guest conductor gigs for George Steel at the Met or at NYCO or at any opera house and couldn’t find one. Seeing as he promotes himself as a Bernstein protege wouldn’t it have been appropriate for him to ask NYCO to conduct at least one performance of “Candide?” Or maybe one of the Philharmonic concerts of “Candide?” Or the Broadway revival a few years ago? Even if he hates opera, couldn’t he have done it for Lenny’s sake?
Don’t even bother attacking me, I’m already such a nobody it doesn’t matter one bit. I find it, as you say, “incroyable”