Fleming, flack finished!
“After a 15-year collaboration that catapulted Renée Fleming from just another plush-voiced soprano to a glamorous, genre-crossing household name, the singer is parting ways with legendary publicist Mary Lou Falcone.” [New York Observer]
Because now that she is a glamorous, genre-crossing household name… wait, why is she parting ways?
Oh, to take it in house. By make Ms. Falcone bend over and take it.
It had been a while we hadn’t talked about La Scoopenda. Her photo in the article looks like it could be used to highlight the side effects of Botox.
Even more so if one clicks to enlarge it.
not familiar with either of them… picture not captioned: which one is renee & which one is mary lou?
So “The People’s Diva” sobriquet was one of Falcone’s creations?
“The move comes as Ms. Fleming, 51, has gradually been scaling back her opera performances in favor of more recitals and private concerts…”
What exactly are private concerts? I mean, she performs and gets paid for parties? Or like Farinelli, who for years and years used to sing every night only for the King of Spain?
Yes, exactly. Private concerts are a big trend in classical-music circles. A Google search turns up some interesting articles, such as this:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ent/5906110.html
Indeed, there’s a whole blog devoted to the care and feeding of private concerts:
http://www.concertsinyourhome.com/blog/
The second link relates to the rising trend of house concerts in folk music circles. I seriously doubt La Fleming would perform at one of these. These house concerts provide a performance outlet for folk artists who otherwise have a hard time finding performance venues. I’ve attended one in Wilmette, IL. Tickets were $15 and the event was pot luck/BYOB.
Not that La Fleming is averse to folk:
I understand doing a private concert once in a while, very occasionally, but to make it a staple of one’s career…I find it a bit demeaning…
I’m not sure what Zachary is referring to, but private concerts have never been a staple of her career. She’s booked for many recitals and public concerts for the rest of 2010 and into 2011.
http://tinyurl.com/3935ez5
You’d be surprised at who’s doing “private concerts”. Performers can make a lot more money doing those concerts than they would from a “regular” recitals. AND if the performer is engaged by a ravbid fan sometimes the skys the limit. I have a client (not classical) who performs in Morrocco or Saudi Arabia for the same prince once or twice a year. It’s insane – the entire band is flown from their home-bases via private jet. Renee ain’t stupid. If somebody wants to give her a quater of a million dollars to show up and be the performing monkey for a group of rich people for the weekend she would be a fool to pass it up.
It’s nothing new. I knew someone who 20+ years ago had paid von Stade to sing in a barn in upstate NY at a birthday party.
I almost wrote this calling her “Flicka” but thought it might be too confusing, lol.
Wow. That face has had LOT’S of work done. She is starting to rival Mrs. Wildenstein and if she continues will one day be like Joan Rivers.
She looks like Katie Couric
Private concerts like when Elton John gets paid 1 million dollars to sing at Rush’s wedding. Or Lady Gaga got more than one million to perform for some russian multi billionaire. These concerts are private affairs and not available to the general paying public. NY billionaire Schwarzmann had one at his 50th birthday and also paid at least one million for some big name which I forget. Maybe it was Beyonce.
Beyonce did a Gaddafi birthday party.
Beyonce also got paid half a million dollars to just show up at some new mega club and sing like 4 songs. People, private concerts are the way to go. For a while in NYC all the chosen people were trying to outdo each other by seeing who could get which rock icon to perform at their children’s bar(bat)mitzvahs.
I am available for private concerts at affordable rates, with post-concert entertainment to be discussed.
I think I know someone who could perform at a private concert tomorrow. It’s just a question of appearance fee and rider, right FQ?
Someone was saying that Renayyy was paying Mary Lou Falcone a huge yearly salary. Perhaps Renee is looking at reducing her overhead. She probably has gotten all she can get out of Mary Lou and will take it in house. Meanwhile, her income may go down in the future and she needs to balance expenditure vs. potential returns.
Ding!, Ding!, Ding!, Ding! – you got the right answer. She is not going to get more famous, so why should she continue to pay her?
OT I’ve been enjoying some older Unnatural Acts of Opera and keep hearing that “I could’ve spread my WIIIINGS” snippet but can not find the entire clip on youtube anywhere. Where can a queen get it.
“Where can a queen get it”
Depends what city your in and whether you prefer tearooms, baths, back rooms, or escorts.
If she’s doing Private Concerts à la late career Frieda Hempel, how exactly is she “The People’s Diva”?
She turned into “The Rich People’s Diva”.