parterre box

192 comments

• Lindoro Almaviva says:

  I don’t think the question should be whether maestro Ramey voiced his opinion to the press(or when did he) but whether he expressed his opinion to the management and when.

  * Did he speak up about his issues?
  * Did they hear his opinions?
  * Did they offer to seek solutions?
  * Did they care?
  * Did they chalked it up to an old man being cranky?

  I think the answers to these questions would reveal a lot more about Ramey and his relationship to the Met (and about the Met’s management) than whether he sent an email to a paper or anywhere else. All these questions will tell us how heard Mr. Ramey felt during the process.

  I know that here in the USA we still want to see productions that are faithful to the times set in the libretto, but we all know that is getting old for some companies. The question is not whether the production is faithful to what the libretto says more than it being faithful to the spirit and the story that the composer is telling. I have not seen the production and I particularly do not like the visuals I have seen, but, is the production faithful to the spirit of the piece or is it a mess? I think that is where we should go.

  The fact that Attila didn’t show up in furs and tribal make up i think is irrelevant. We know that we do not need to have a Violeta in hoop skirts to have the story well told, the hoop skirt is a visual preference of a part of the public.

  on March 8, 2010 at 8:01 PM
  • iltenoredigrazia says:

    How about an Attila with electric lights on his helmet in the midst of a rain forest?

    on March 8, 2010 at 10:21 PM
  • Gianni B says:

    I am sure Mr. Ramey contacted his AGMA union rep and filed a lengthy complaint. And at what point is the MET going to say “Geez Sam, we are sorry we’ll spend another million in the 3 weeks we have left to rebuild and reposition the set to your liking and throw out those trashy $900 Prada boots the chorus is wearing?” He knows Mr. Gelb is not interested in hearing what anyone has to say.

    Continually, I find it strange that both of the successful new productions this season, (being the “House of the Dead” and “The Nose”) are successful perhaps because the music is completely unknown and both pieces are oddities. As well, both were either borrowed from other theaters(HOTD) or virtually guided by other theaters(Marinsky). Yet every new production of the standard repertoire they screw the pooch. Strange no?

    on March 9, 2010 at 12:01 AM
    • NYCOQ says:

      It just proves that Gelb’s “artistic vision” is “borrowed”. I have seen nothing outside of the Barber that he championed from beginning to end that was a success. All of the other successes were developed without (or very little) of his input. With the 2 other sold-out rarity productions this season the Met missed an opportunity to present a world-class production of Attila. I don’t want to seem like I don’t care about Tosca or Hoffman, but those are standard rep pieces that will find easy financing in a few seasons from a donor/s. Down the road when the board is confronted with programming something “daring” I would hate that the opposition would bring up the mess that was Attila as a reason to not produce an interesting rarity (for the Met that is) that doesn’t invlove Fleming or Netrebko.

      on March 9, 2010 at 1:25 AM
• mj says:

  Who died and made you all the moral arbiters of the world? Geez Louise. Mr. Ramey is a free individual, as far as I know, not owned by Mr. Gelb.

  I am happy to read such a candid statement from an artist. And not just because I happen to agree with his assessment of this run of Attila…

  I attended the premiere and pretty much every performer on stage looked seriously uncomfortable which makes me wonder if they wouldn’t agree with what Mr. Ramey has written.

  I also don’t find it at all surprising that a performer would want to read reviews of productions they are a part of. It’s their life, why wouldn’t they be interested?

  on March 8, 2010 at 8:21 PM
• yappy says:

  Of course Mr. Ramey can state his opinion whenever he pleases. I just couldn’t believe he’d do it on some obscure comments board (sorry Dallas). Couldn’t he have given an interview or written an editorial or something? It still looks so weird and sort of petty to me. And the latter is definitely not an adjective I’d ever associate with Mr. Ramey.

  on March 8, 2010 at 9:18 PM
• BETSY_ANN_BOBOLINK says:

  OT — Confirm or deny. Placido Domingo underwent surgery yesterday for colon cancer.

  on March 8, 2010 at 10:19 PM
  • BETSY_ANN_BOBOLINK says:

    Never mind. It’s confirmed.

    on March 8, 2010 at 10:25 PM
    • CruzSF says:

      I hope Domingo recovers as well as possible. Cancer is much more serious than I expected of his mysterious condition.

      on March 8, 2010 at 11:31 PM
      • mefisto says:

        He was at the met yesterday watching a rehearsal of HAMLET. He’s conducting the production of it at WNO.

        on March 10, 2010 at 3:34 PM
      • CruzSF says:

        What a powerhouse he is. He must have fantastic genes as not everyone can sing for as long as Domingo and then bounce back from cancer surgery.

        on March 10, 2010 at 4:18 PM
• dcrazmo says:

  I think that one of the reasons that Ramey can get away with speaking the truth, is that the production is scheduled to run, regardless of anyone’s opinion, including that of the press. His trashing the direction — rightly — isn’t going to lead to performances being cancelled, even if it does effect ticket sales — a big “if.” The production isa misquided mess, and thank goodness there are artists brave enough to call it as they see it. I mean, at this point, what has Ramey got to lose?

  on March 8, 2010 at 11:41 PM
• Ruxton says:

  Get well quickly Mr Domingo!

  on March 8, 2010 at 11:41 PM
• Constantine A. Papas says:

  We should not jump the gun. It was reported that Domingo had a polyp that was malignant. If this is true and the wall of the colon was not involved, the outlook is excellent. This is the most benign cancer to have. We hope that complete recovery is in sight, for there will never be another Domingo.

  on March 9, 2010 at 1:54 AM
• armerjacquino says:

  Some (wilful?) misunderstanding going on here. Nobody, so far as I can see, is denying Ramey’s right to express his opinion. It’s the wisdom of doing so while he is still appearing in the ‘fiasco’ that is being questioned.

  on March 9, 2010 at 5:00 AM
  • figaroindy says:

    Agreed – also, as the earlier posters have said it may not affect (affect is a verb, effect is a noun) the production at this point….on the other hand, and I’m sure it was considered by Mr. Ramey – his contract is signed and final….so, conveniently, it won’t affect his being paid, either…I question how he can possibly give a full performance, if he’s not going to “buy into” it – he’s paid an awful lot to phone it in, as someone earlier said.

    on March 9, 2010 at 8:58 AM
    • schweigundtanze says:

      FWIW, affect and effect both exist as nouns and as transitive verbs…

      on March 9, 2010 at 9:46 AM
      • MontyNostry says:

        We’ll see if you can effect a change with that piece of advice — though it might not affect anyone’s behaviour.

        on March 9, 2010 at 9:49 AM
      • rapt says:

        And at the least, monty, there’s a bracing affect to the advice.

        on March 9, 2010 at 11:18 AM
    • Lalala says:

      It would indeed affect Mr. Ramey’s bank account if he pulls out. Singer’s contracts are pretty rigid. You either sing and get paid or don’t sing and don’t get paid. He’s at the point in his career that he doesn’t have to worry about getting future contracts at The Met or elsewhere and so perhaps he now feels he has the opportunity to speak out.

      Singers on weekly contracts (smaller roles—house performers) would probably never make these comments in the press or elsewhere in anybody’s hearing. They do indeed get paid even if they have to miss a performance–however, their job security would be threatened if they made this kind of comment.

      on March 9, 2010 at 4:33 PM
• La Valkyrietta says:

  Team spirit, ha! If a long experienced Attila says it is a fiasco there was never that team spirit. My guess is that Verdi and Muti have kept the morale, but the rest of the production team are not working for Notre Dame. Here’s a clip for the fans of the football analogy which is not as good in this production as that of the red shoes (SQIAC).

  on March 9, 2010 at 7:06 AM
• Bluessweet says:

  Wait just a minute: Benign polyps are generally considered not cancer. Cancer is malignant. I’ve had benign polyps removed during my colonoscopy procedure, biopsied and found benign. Placido has end up with surgery. Not the same thing at all. My older cousin died because they couldn’t (or didn’t) get it all. I hope Mr. Domingo’s surgery is a success and that, if needed, his radiology completely clears up his problem.

  For all the readers: Please get your cancer check-ups on schedule. Colonoscopy, Pap Smears, Mammography and PSA blood work (the easiest of all, as you can get it done as part of your annual blood work up.) My PSA test led to biopsy, which lead to surgery for Prostate Cancer (confirmed) TEN years ago. Early discovery and treatment and I am having a helluva great life. Just my own testimony.

  Back to Placido Domingo: He’s arguably the best opera star ever. He’s done everything from zarzuela to opera, with a stop for a recording with the late John Denver. While he may not have been the best conductor ever, he’s good enough to have done so for years and with major opera houses. He’s sung both leading tenor and baritone roles in opera from verismo to Wagner. I first saw him in Cav-Pag (Pag) with Enrico di Giuseppe doing Turiddu at NYCO. Di Giuseppi was really, really good but Domingo was better.

  May he do as well as I have.

  on March 9, 2010 at 10:09 AM