Mister Act
Above, the cutest press photo released today by the Met. (Juan Diego Flórez in the title role of Rossini’s “Le Comte Ory.” Photo: Micaela Rossato / Metropolitan Opera.) Following the jump: more preview images of the Met’s other six new productions of the 2010-2011 season.
Construction of the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Wagner’s “Der Ring des Nibelungen” at Scène Éthique Studio in Varennes, Québec. Photo: Boris Firquet
René Pape in the title role of Mussorgsky’s “Boris Godunov.” Photo: Nick Heavican / Metropolitan Opera
A scene from Verdi’s “Don Carlo.” Covent Garden production photo: Catherine Ashmore
Marina Poplavskaya as Violetta in Verdi’s “La Traviata.” De Nederlandse Opera production photo: Klaus Lefebvre
“Nixon in China.” English National Opera production photo: Alastair Muir
That would seem to answer the question of whose face would be on all the buses. It”s got everything — glamour, allure, mystery, even religion. And just a bit naughty. Yay, win one for the JD.
Fabulous photo of Florez.
La Cieca, as long as commenters are asking for “upgrades,” I’d like to request a video-blocking feature?
Meanwhile, over at Berkley they have their own operatic technology:
I did enjoy this very clever animation (Liz Taylor to Whistler’s Mother) – but why is the first related video offered by YouTube “Cooking Tips : How to Broil Chicken Thighs”?
Non sequitur to end all non sequiturs….
at first blush: all this casting sounds terrific.
peter gelb’s finest moment??
ALL of it sounds terrific?
Damrau despite her gifts was pretty ghastly as Marie and Rosina. She won’t be better in ORY.
Terrific?
Voigt and Giordano and Uusitalo paying homage to Destinn, Caruso and Amato?
Terrific?
Poplavskaya in DON CARLO. Terrific?
Trebs going back to Norina with her current voice? Terrific?
Domingo and Andris Nelson back to conduct. Terrific?
Borodina, with her now screamed high notes and indifferent French as Giukietta? Terrific?
Did they not play up their sexiest cast to date, the Cosi? I know they’re pushing Christie’s conducting, but c’mon, that’s a sexy cast!
Here’s your bus photo:
Isabelle Leonard, Miah Persson, Danielle de Niese, Nathan Gunn, Pavol Breslik, and Wolfgang Holzmair all in various states of undress, with faces of surprise and exstacy. Maybe a hidden hand or two?
Now THAT will put asses in the seats (and garner an NC-17 rating for the HD broadcast).
And if Isabelle Leonard, Miah Persson, Danielle de Niese, Nathan Gunn, Pavol Breslik, and Wolfgang Holzmair all sang together in unison you might be able to hear something over the orchestra.
Somewhere in Lima, a mother is at church frantically lighting candles for her son …
Seriously, is Erika Miklosa ever going to be given a shot at anything besides Queen Of The Night?
No.
I haven’t heard a reason why she should be. She can barely get through that.
agreed
(With lots of coaching on shaping the phrases) maybe, just maybe…
She seems to be have one of those soubrettish voices that only possess one colour and one volume level. A brunette Eva Lind.
Very annoying breathing.
What throaty singing from both! Have people forgotten what this is supposed to sound like?
Joanie and Pav…sing for us again!
I wasn’t impressed much by her QooN and the Lucia excerpt shows a light fluttery soubrette. Pretty uninteresting sounding and it’s seems like her voice can’t take the least bit of pressure.
Probably her best rep would be operetta type stuff
in the European theaters where that stuff is popular.
She does sing in operetta – in Hungary
I stand corrected. There’s a Regnava nel silenzio clip around that was, for lack of word, amateurish. I’m a Regnava whore myself, so it’s kind of a deal breaker for me.
But such a pretty voice! (a throaty soubrette makes one … sweat.)
Agree with those on the previous thread who are depressed about the upcoming Met season. Le Comte Ory is mostly lesser Rossini. La gazza ladra is a more interesting piece (not sure how either work will/would play in the cavernous Met) but no question JDF is next year’s poster dude.
The Wozzeck could be gripping, though with Waltraud, one never knows. As for the Ring, parts one and two, will have to wait and see. We’ll also know in June whether Debbie can get her gun. She’ll have fun with the role, should have the high notes, and they’ll eat it up in San Francisco.
Has JL only been conducting at the Met for nearly 40 years? Seems more like a century.
Yeah, I dream of the day when our local company puts on 23 productions a year and I become “depressed” by the whole enterprise.
Thank you, Cruz!
“lesser Rossini”???? Let’s wait and see.
Minor?
Bingo! I was going to post that clip but had internet connection problems. I think it speaks for itself.
cieca can i facebook these photos?
Please click the “facebook” icon (to the right of the word “permalink” at the bottom of the original posting) to share the photos on Facebook.
Why is Nixon being touted as “originally created by” ENO? It was a co-production with Houston, the Kennedy Center, and BAM. Did ENO rebuild it or something? And why, WHY are they not broadcasting it? It’s a minor crime that the vastly inferior Doctor Atomic saw DVD release and Nixon still circulates only in pirated off-air tapes…
Not quite, LittleMasterMiles; there was a commercial release of Nixon on Nonesuch Elektra — the cassette set which I have was 79177. At least one production was televised, and rather handsomely, although neither may now be commercially available.
I’m afraid I was unclear—I was referring to video. Nixon in China has been available on CD more or less all along—for a while there was even a highlights disc. The opera was televised from HGO as well, with no less than Walter Cronkite doing the intros. That’s never been released commercially, and I only got a copy from .
Could it be that presenting a BAM production at the Met is not something the latter wants to trumpet?