Comments on: The rise of the Roman empire

By: rysanekfreak

rysanekfreak — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:25:02 +0000

I’m listening to the baritone version of Werther now on Sirius. I’m surprised Domingo hasn’t tried that one yet. Maybe he could sing Erda and Fafner in the new Ring Cycle.

By: LittleMasterMiles

LittleMasterMiles — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:38:26 +0000

I agree that a unit set is likely; that sort of thing is Lepage’s trademark. His recent ‘Lipsynch’ and earlier ‘Seven Streams of the River Ota’ (both seen in NYC at BAM) rely almost entirely on set pieces that are reconfigured in a zillion clever ways over several hours. Not unlike Wagner’s music.

By: Baritenor

Baritenor — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:31:48 +0000

I think he could pull it off. I just pity the poor tenor who would have to sing Otello opposite him. Falstaff, on the other hand, no matter how hard I try, I can’t quite picture.

By: CruzSF

CruzSF — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:17:41 +0000

MN, I noticed that the honors show was available on cbs.com, with each honoree’s segment available separately (i.e., you can watch only the segments that interest you).

By: Krunoslav

Krunoslav — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:42:07 +0000

Love it!

Sybil: “Troika… semyorka… tuza… troika… semyorka… tuza…”

By: Krunoslav

Krunoslav — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:39:38 +0000

Paddypig, don’t forget Olivia Stapp, who sang five Lady Macbeths in 1988! (Shirley only did one).

I was at the ghastly 1982 prima of Hall’s staging, an unexpected eventual triumph for Scotto despite some rough moments and a rout for Hall. When that nude Hecate came out with an electric light on her head I thought I’d woken up in Vegas.

By: iltenoredigrazia

iltenoredigrazia — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:34:11 +0000

The problem for me is that I expect/want/like a big, meaty, round baritone voice for these roles. At this pace he’ll be doing Boris in a handful of years.

By: MontyNostry

MontyNostry — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:29:11 +0000

Domingo as Iago? Has he ever played a villain before?

There is a lot to be said for interpreting Iago as an apparent Nr Nice Guy. On the other hand, I always feel that the wicked ensign’s evil nature is far too obvious in Otello: the Moor must be really dumb not to realise he is being taken for a ride. One of the problems with the DVD from Covent Garden with Domingo and Leiferkus under Solti is that one could never imagine such an urbane fellow falling under the spell of such an obviously chilly psychopath.

By: iltenoredigrazia

iltenoredigrazia — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 14:49:03 +0000

Totally unrelated: The latest issue of Gramophone magazine includes a review of Domingo’s first Boccanegra’s in Berlin. It says that Domingo is considering following with Iago and Falstaff.

I guess when you are Domingo you sing whatever you want wherever you want. He’s already scheduled to sing Boccanegra in Milan, New York, London, and Madrid.

By: Lalala

Lalala — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 14:32:40 +0000

I would guess that parts of the set (i.e., the decking) are used throughout Lepage’s concept of the Ring. This is done in so many Ring productions these days and would provide continuity between the four operas.

By: MontyNostry

MontyNostry — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 12:30:11 +0000

Does anyone know if the Honors programme is available online (I am in the UK)?

By: Baritenor

Baritenor — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:05:14 +0000

Those are chipmunks, Chip and Dale, to be precise. But I agree, where is that squirrel? Off with a Moose, perhaps?

By: Baritenor

Baritenor — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:03:44 +0000

…the Magic of Live Theater?

I dunno, maybe it’ll be a unit set for all four operas.
Or perhaps they’ll be able to disassemble RHEINGOLD because they’ll have a week or so between performance of that opera.

By: Baritenor

Baritenor — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:00:33 +0000

I concur; I know plenty of people, opera buffs and sane people alike, who didn’t like the Zefferelli Tosca, myself being one of them. I don’t think I’ve met ANYONE who doesn’t like Boheme or Turandot except for some posters on Parterre who have seen them eighty times or so and are sick of them.

By: justanothertenor

justanothertenor — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:26:09 +0000

The question that is haunting me, and that no one else seems to have posed: if the set for Rheingold is so big that they cannot fit it backstage concurrently with other productions, how are they going to EVER produce a full Lepage Ring-Cycle in one week?

By: CruzSF

CruzSF — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:22:03 +0000

But darn it, during those clips of Grace on stage, I kept hearing “Tasty Hasty Pudding.” Thank you, La C!

By: CruzSF

CruzSF — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:20:37 +0000

I’m watching it (a few hours later). Angela is singing now. I love how Grace turned down her collar a little for her segment. Simon Estes said that Grace and Angela are friends and Grace certainly seems moved by Angela’s rendition of “Vissi d’arte.”

By: CruzSF

CruzSF — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:02:55 +0000

Feb 22 does seem late. SFO is unveiling its season Jan. 19. I hadn’t heard that the press conference had been cancelled. Thanks for the info, irontongue.

It all seems like a long way from the days of Gatti, when the Met season planning would begin in February.

By: Ercole Farnese

Ercole Farnese — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:39:14 +0000

I’d hire Amarilli Nizza. She has worked a lot of Zeffirelli, and has a very small waist. Plus we have just ascertained that she would thrill audiences with her cheeky high Cs.

By: rommie

rommie — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:27:04 +0000

irontongue DO TELL. what do u mean that La Radv might not be leonora? she is out of tosca for trovatore then out of trovatore?

By: Arianna a Nasso

Arianna a Nasso — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:24:18 +0000

I too want value for my money, but seeing a 25 year old production, which I’ve seen several times before, with minimal direction is not “value” to me. My priorities – and those of many others here – are the opposite of yours. For a production, we want exciting direction, and if that happens in a “grand” period production, all the better.

By: La Cieca

La Cieca — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:18:14 +0000

La Cieca will be glad to publish any such updates (purely as a stopgap until Sieglinde’s site becomes available, of course.)

By: irontongue

irontongue — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:13:27 +0000

I have some reasons to think that casting for the Met’s next Trovatore might be up in the air; i.e. might not be S. Rad. We’ll see.

Feb. 22 does seem late for a season announcement. SF Opera has canceled their usual press conference in favor of a press release, sigh.

By: La Cieca

La Cieca — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 03:56:46 +0000

La Cieca remembers very well the prima of that revival (restaged) of the “Hall” Macbeth. In the third act the ballet was given, a galumphing dance of rag-clad sylphs that included (if I recall correctly) a good deal of audible cackling, from the dancers I mean. When the divertissement finished, there were perhaps two hand-claps, some loud hissing, and a derisive cry of “bis!” followed by a good deal more of audible cackling, though this time originating in the auditorium. I attended the second performance of the run a few nights later, and the ballet was cut!

By: Camille

Camille — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 03:19:04 +0000

Indeed yes, where is my darling Squirrel? Nut gathering or, more likely,
boob-gawking?

Is the picture of D. Duck sawing off the limb with squirrels one of Cieca’s subtle touches to inform us of a rodent rupture?

By: Quanto Painy Fakor

Quanto Painy Fakor — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 03:15:08 +0000

I think the more important issue is a problem inherent with most opera companies here and abroad, in that revivals get short shrift in terms of rehearsals and even the most talented assistant director have all they can do to put things back together working “from the book” or archival videos resulting in “so and so stood here”, “Yes, turn to him for Assassino then eat the floor bitch”, and “where the hell is light cue 499B, special on the dummy? – GO! Productions that remain in repertoire should grow with each revival, but that is rarely the case. If something doesn’t work then fix it between performances; “Schwertleite needs more coaching sessions” – FORGET IT.

By: Camille

Camille — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 03:07:58 +0000

It’s neither the Board nor the Box –

It IS the nightly haunting of Peter Gelb by the spectre of Sybil.

By: Gualtier M

Gualtier M — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:37:33 +0000

Tenore di Grazia:

The Graham Vick “Trovatore” was pulled apart by Volpe by the second performance – Vick removed his name from the production. There were further revivals after the first season with people like Zvetelina Vassileva and Radvanovsky, Franco Farina and Carlos Alvarez. The Peter Hall “Macbeth” had further revivals with Verrett (replacing Eva Marton) and Adelaide Negri. The disastrous Zambello “Lucia” had one revival the next season with Devia and Jerry Hadley.

The “Simon Boccanegra” that Milnes did in the 80′s was a borrowed production from Chicago or San Francisco – it was fairly straightforward and traditional. Another disaster that survived only one season was Ponnelle’s 1979 “Der Fliegende Hollander”. That was also a SFO coproduction.

I was told that in 1951 Rudolf Bing brought back an older Novak/Dufrere production of “I Pagliacci” after a new one done by Hans Busch and Horace Armistead was disastrously received.

By: bewilbered

bewilbered — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:35:13 +0000

I do have some tidbits to share, gang, some of which have been in Sieglinde’s hands for a while. She’s had a busy busy semester, but there may be a way over at balconybox.blogspot.com that you can give her a nudge. I think we can probably manage another update or two before the season is announced, reportedly week of 2/22/10.

–I do hear that a soprano whose previously scheduled Met debut evaporated like a GHOST is on tap for 2010-2011.

By: diva2themax

diva2themax — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:26:49 +0000

Anyone else watching the Kennedy Center Honors? Grace has on a huge white collared dress & Angela is going to perform for her. Can’t wait to see all of the fab. Grace clips.