parterre box

94 comments

• francois says:

  Hi Alto,

  I also don’t understand all the hating going on here.

  Parterre seems to be a place for people who really hate opera.

  on March 4, 2009 at 12:30 PM
• jenufa'ssister says:

  @66 Right, PD made it seem possible. (Crack me up that we don’t want to use his whole name!) But clearly he’s super human… I’m with you on all the rest, too. There are singers out there who know better, so take comfort in that. We seem to be going through a bit of a “correction” in the field, where some of this is being shown for what it is and what can result if things are taken too far, by an artist or by their agency(ies). People are watching, and learning.

  on March 4, 2009 at 12:42 PM
• HoidiToidi says:

  Francois…..thank you for saying that? This is not for opera lovers or those who understand singing.

  on March 4, 2009 at 1:13 PM
• kashania says:

  There are plenty of opera lovers on this site. The haters are just louder.

  on March 4, 2009 at 2:27 PM
• Not Peter Gelb says:

  I guess I am in the minortiy. I agree with #42 — while flawed, this Sonnambula worked (even if the sets were supremely ugly). It was far, far better than that stillborn Lucia, with its high schoolesque cut outs.

  I enjoyed the evening (and the scandal as well!).

  The overriding problem I have is that now that the Met does not develop new productions for its exclusive use, directors are handicapped in what technology they can employ. So long as Gelb sees everything as a joint venture with other houses, the Met magic will be a memory of the past.

  on March 4, 2009 at 2:46 PM
• Le_Chiffre says:

  I think that “humor” and “sarcasm” are greatly misunderstood when applied to opera. Despite the fact that intentional humor appears in many librettos and roles, Sonnambula doesn’t have humor.

  Dessay’s unimpressive performance isn’t shocking. I loved her recordings years ago, but have never been able to stomach her “acting”. There is virtually no role that she has undertaken recently that requires her to display any sort of versatility or sincerity in her acting. Perhaps this is because she takes roles that she does not feel sincere toward, in any sense of the word. Other than perhaps sincerely snotty…..

  I’m all for a wicked parody, but comediennes Dessay and Zimmerman are not.

  on March 4, 2009 at 3:19 PM
• CAMILLE says:

  Has anyone consulted http://www.theoperacritic.com?

  There, all major reviews are collocated plus two edifying articles by Mssrs. Blier and Davis on La Sonnambula in the latest Opera News issue. Interesting what Mme. Scotto has to say. My significant other saw her production in Florida and said it worked quite well as recycled Visconti.

  As well, it may be enlightening to those who have not read the New Yorker article “The Actress”, to see the Opera News articles for what Mary Zimmerman has to say as to the genesis of this ‘Konzept’.

  on March 4, 2009 at 4:44 PM
• Ian says:

  @Le_Chiffre- I think the issue is more that she’s been taking roles where she is looking for a significant acting challenge. She likes to take the proverbial swing at something which will stretch her theatrical chops, and unfortunately this time it was a swing and a miss.

  on March 4, 2009 at 5:36 PM
• Ian says:

  @Camille- of course they have, its like the anagram generators in games of Facebook scrabble.

  Great site though.

  on March 4, 2009 at 5:39 PM
• pausa says:

  I will not be running to see Sonnambula at all after
  the reviews. An earlier post questioned the criticism of Gelb’s stinker. This latest opera is really nothing compared to what he is doing to the company as a whole. Hello? Has anyone really talked about the Chagall story which is sidelined by the Sonnambula reveiws? How about the stagings? Went to
  see Rondine which was a dream in San Francisco and yet here it was sloppy in every way, casting, rehearsals and the set needed sprucing. Petals rained down at the wrong time and the chorus laughed. Past directors may have had stinkers but hocking the wall hangings out front? Shame!!

  on March 4, 2009 at 5:56 PM