Demonstrating that delicate exotic fruits need not always be ignorant, dear Lady Bracknell guessed correctly that our most recent Regie quiz was, in fact, Salome. Thilo Reinhardt‘s production from the Komische Oper Berlin was not very well received, alas, though, on the bright side, it did provide a lively subject for the cher public’s guessing. Another puzzler follows the jump. Read more »
It’s Saturday afternoon, which of course means only one thing, the parterre chat, which today will be focused on Verdi’s Il trovatore, starring, in the demanding dual roles of Leonora and Conte di Luna, Joyce DiDonato. Read more »
La Cieca has been advised not to expect any sort of announcement about the New York City Opera’s 2011-2012 season, even whether there will be such a season, until after a meeting of the board of the company on May 19. In the meantime, AGMA has announced they will not pursue a job action against NYCO on Sunday because, really, what’s the point? [via Backstage]
“[Dr. Jonathan] Miller openly wonders if his defiantly naturalistic approach to opera makes him unfashionable in an art form bent on conceptualism.” La Cieca, in constrast, openly wonders when this whingeing old prat will finally shut the fuck up and retire already. [straight.com]
Glyndebourne’s release of a live Rosenkavalier from 1965 longs to be loved and cherished by listeners. Featuring a thrilling Traumcast composed of Montserrat Caballé, Otto Edelmann, Teresa Zylis-Gara, and Edith Mathis, one would certainly expect it to deserve much praise and admiration. The sound quality is, however, a stunning disappointment.
Sometimes it seems as though DVDs are released just for the sake of filling a hole in the catalogue. Considering the lack of anything truly distinctive in this 2007 production of Verdi’s La forza del destino from the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, that would certainly seem to be the case here. (If anyone is wondering, the hole in the catalogue I am referring to is a modern HD version of the standard 1869 Forza with a recognizable cast.)
UPDATE: The Met’s press office states, “At the beginning of Act III (‘The Ride of the Valkyries’ scene) of last evening’s performance of Die Walküre, one of the planks that comprise the set descended to the stage floor rather than stopping opposite the stage apron. As a result, the artist singing Siegrune, mezzo-soprano Eve Gigliotti, slid down the plank as planned but landed on the mainstage floor behind the apron. The mainstage is approximately 3 feet lower than the apron. The error was due to a misheard cue. Ms. Gigliotti, who was not injured, left the stage briefly but returned [...]
Cher Public