parterre box

43 comments

• Buster says:

  @ 19 and 25: I don’t know about Plowright, but Nelly Miricioiu is in great form. She sang a fabulous Elle here two weeks ago – a very moving portrayal. Poulenc wants a young singer for the part, I know, but it worked nevertheless.

  on February 9, 2009 at 3:04 AM
• ariel says:

  Why pick on poor Mr. Tommasini, it is cruel -
  He means no harm -as his reviews carry no weight whatsoever
  why pick on him .? There are other sources for information
  on the music scene. Soon the Times will be cutting back on many fronts and perhaps its arts reviewers will go since they
  no longer mean much to the general public. It must be depressing for a person to write and realize no one cares
  for his opinion.Be kind, he has enough to worry about.

  on February 9, 2009 at 10:06 AM
• Cassandra says:

  I’m fairly sure he makes top fee. He did do four productions. At one time he was considered a Met “star” although those days are over, and he has been singing at the house for almost two decades, so he would have arrived at top fee some time ago. Once you are at top fee tier, there is no reverse, especially singing principal roles, which is why the Met delays an artist making top fee for quite some time, no matter their “star” status. Considering his tenure and seniority with the company and his once star status, he’s making top fee.

  At the top fee and combining that with his performances, he would still be making less than what is shown. However, it was pointed out to me, and I had forgotten, that there is a hidden fee which is the weekly “rehearsal fee” that is given to artists and is not negotiated as part of the fee or contract, nor is it per diem (which is negotiated as part of the fee.) Managers do not take a cut of this, but it is still obviously taxed. This increases every year you work with the company, and he would have had at least twenty weeks of rehearsal, if not more, having been involved in four productions.

  That would explain the gap between what he would have received fee-wise, and what he actually received.

  By the way, the top fee is not nearly as high as everyone thinks it is. The other big houses pay more.

  on February 9, 2009 at 12:37 PM
• kashania says:

  IN that case, I’ve got a cost-cutting solution for the Met. Get someone other than Croft to sing Germont and Sharpless! Sorry, the guy isn’t worth it.

  on February 9, 2009 at 12:43 PM
• La Cieca says:

  kashania: And yet, when the Met tries to get someone else besides Ruth Ann Swenson to sing any of “her” roles, that means the Met is being lookist and ageist.

  Cassandra’s comment does suggest a reason why certain singers are not being asked back to the Met: their fees are too high. I mean, when Ruth Ann Swenson and Anna Netrebko get the same fee, something is definitely wrong in this business.

  on February 9, 2009 at 12:51 PM
• thomas says:

  What exactly is top fee? Last I heard it was $17,000, but that was several years ago.

  on February 9, 2009 at 12:59 PM
• Alto says:

  Anyone who saw Dwayne Croft opposite Flicka in her last Met P&M performances (with M. Horne also in the cast), will speak against his present singing only regretfully. It was all so terrific.

  on February 9, 2009 at 3:46 PM
• joemomma says:

  dwayne croft got flown in to sing Cav/ Pag when the newby was terrible. Paid a special price no doubt to do so. Instead of putting the cover on who had costumes!

  on February 9, 2009 at 7:59 PM
• kashania says:

  La Cieca: I agree about your Nebs vs RAS comparison. I wasn’t aware of the Met’s top-fee system. Achieving the top fee should not be the same as getting tenure. THere was a time when RAS was a major star at the Met but she isn’t anymore. If the Met is required to pay her the top fee, then I can see why they may not be anxious to bring her back.

  on February 10, 2009 at 12:16 PM
• Cassandra says:

  “Last I heard it was $17,000, but that was several years ago.”

  No. Less.

  Yes, there is a reason that older singers who were stars at a time are not re-engaged, and that has a bit to do with having to be paid whatever fee they topped out at.

  That for example, is why Paul Plishka was listed one year as the highest independent contractor. Because although his fee may not be the very top, it most certainly is in the upper tier, and that means he makes it no matter what repertoire he sings, and that includes Benoit/Alcindoro, so when the Met is making the decision to hire Plishka in a small role, they are making the decision to pay a very large (well, Met large) fee no matter how many lines he sings. At this point, they’re paying for the name. Plishka in Ben/Alc is luxury casting.

  There is a possibility that former stars way be willing to negotiate downward, and I’m not going to say that it hasn’t happened at some point, but I haven’t heard of a case, and I don’t personally know any singers who once made top fee that would accept anything less, no matter what the role.

  Yes, that means Ros Plowright makes top fee when she appears, no matter how crap she sounds. She a star of long time standing, and if they are engaging her, she is making bank.

  on February 12, 2009 at 8:50 PM