Been there, Don that
After a rather long afternoon at the Met, a member of the cher public writes:
“The Don Carlo final dress was worth catching.”
Our spy has more to say after the jump.
The orchestra and conductor were excellent. A few fairly minor contretemps that will probably cleaned up in post-rehearsal notes.
Yannick Nézet-Séguin is clearly a major talent. This is not an easy show to conduct, and he really made it his own. Simon Keenlyside was very good. Not the really top-tier kind of voice, but very artistic. HD fans are in for a treat. Anna Smirnova has a huge Guleghina-like instrument, but not much finesse. And she’s pretty short on any visual glamor at all.
Looking forward to subsequent perfs by Roberto Alagna and Marina Poplavskaya. Both looked good and acted very well. She was especially touching in the farewell to her lady-in-waiting. She has a real tenderness, which comes across very strongly.
The production is mostly very good, often spectacularly atmospheric and beautiful. Great lighting. Gorgeous, apt costumes.
I was a bit taken aback that the “Prelude and Introduction”—so long a hallmark of Met performances— is gone. Or was gone today at least. I wonder whose idea that was. A lot of pretty important music in those 10-12 minutes. I missed it a lot.
Alagna sounds pretty light
Indeed he does, florezrocks.
Call me crazy, but I’m liking Poplavskaya (on broadcast). (I liked her telecast Liu, too, which didn’t seem to win universal acclaim here.)
She sounds better then she did in the ROH b’cast, that’s fer sure…….!
this is sounding so beautiful!
Go keenlyside! can’t wait for the Giunto aria
I keep thinking about Bjoerling and Merrill. Such voices don’t exist anymore.
At the duet, enzo? Yes, who wouldn’t? These days, however, you have to take what they give you.
Amen, amen,amen!
And Furlanetto is nothing compared to Siepi.
enzo, I would not say that; Furlanetto is a much more
profound bass voice than Ezio P., who was a basso
cantante for certain. Furlanetto can be highly
commanding and solid of tone; Pinza was ever the
lyric, and stretched, to be frank, by Boris.
mrmyster, it just occurred to me that the greatest Philip I’ve ever heard was Ghiaurov.
The Met premiere of this opera had Ponselle, Martinelli and De Luca. Wow!
I go along with enzo. I always found Ghiaurov’s quite beautiful and expressive. Actually, the Met has had quite a few excellent Phillips in the last half century or so: Siepi, Ghiaurov, Hines, Morris, Ramey, Pape. I’m not impressed by Furlanetto’s.
What I have heard of Popsy thus far is head and shoulders above Mescheriakova or Gorchakova, both of whom I’ve heard in this part @ the Barn. I am pleasantly surprised.
Furlanetto sounds better in the part than last I heard him, several years ago.
Anyway, I am just thrilled to hear Don Carlo(s)–any manner what so ever as I love it beyond words.
Is there a chat going on along with the broadcast?
Hello,
I’m french and the broadcast was a little bit late for me…and i had a problem of connexion during the magnificient duet Posa/Carlos with a very good Roberto Alanga. Can anyone can help me to hear it please?
thanks you in advance
romain