November 2011
Which summer festival, barely an hour north of Manhattan, will offer as its opera performances in the summer of 2012 Rossini’s Ciro in Babilonia (with Ewa Podles, Jessica Pratt and Michael Spyres) and Bellini’s I Capuleti e i Montecchi (with Kate Aldrich, Eglise Gutierrez and Leonardo Capalbo)?
By La Cieca
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“An atomic explosion kicked off the last act of Gounod’s Faust Tuesday at the Met, but the production as a whole was more dud than bomb.” [New York Post]
By La Cieca
La Cieca (illustration courtesy of the Wall Street Journal) invites you, the cher public, to enjoy a chat tonight during the prima of Gounod’s Faust from the Met.
By La Cieca
At one time, the idea of a performance of La Gioconda conjured up images of over-the-top, competitive, passionate vocalism, and big personalities. As a vehicle for great singers (and especially a great protagonist), it was thrilling.
By ilconte
Nicely readable profile of Jonas Kaufmann in the Wall Street Journal today, but how come it’s illustrated with a drawing of Neil Diamond?
By La Cieca
It’s kind of shocking, when you really think about it, that the kind of international operatic model that the Royal Opera now operates on barely existed only 50 years ago. Until around 1960 most of the performances at the Covent Garden were given in English and the casting choices were enough to make the Vicar…
By Baritenor
Leave it to those Torontonians to blow the lid off an opera story happening in New York! (Goodness knows the local journalists don’t bother.)
By La Cieca
La Cieca’s looking for a few good commenters to join the exalted ranks of parterre reviewers of new CD and DVD releases. Care to apply? Read on after the jump.
By La Cieca
Soprano Mirella Freni is under investigation by the Bologna District Attorney’s office of Bologna for money laundering and exportation of money abroad in connection with the BER bank. The artist from Modena, 76, will be heard by the magistrates in the next few days to clarify her position, now that the DA Antonella Scandellari has…
By La Cieca
La Cieca insists you, the cher public, observe the “no whispering” rule during the performance, but, come intermission time, you are encouraged to chatter on and on about anything and nothing this week of November 27.
By La Cieca
Indeed those were Cretan windmills seen in the most recent Regie quiz, and once that fact was established, manou and MontyNostry quickly closed the case: the opera is indeed Idomeneo, as performed at the Tiroler Landestheater in a production by Peer Boysen. You’ll find more to puzzle over after the jump.
By La Cieca
Our Own Betsy (seen at left in an “unretouched” photo) declares, “Good evening, horror-lovers, and welcome to Tales from the Box. This is your Olde Box-Keeper with a gruesome fewsome to feed your screamin’ Mimìs. Tonight we pay tribute to the upcoming prima at the Met of Fausit, in which an old man pays for…
By La Cieca
All La Cieca can say is that so very many of you here shine in diamond splendor, and she only hopes she can stream even a single ray of light into the night of your heart. The results of the “Ian Bostridge” competition are after the jump.
By La Cieca
La Cieca is sure that you, the cher public, will have the mostess’ of fun this week with the vast selection of operatic activities available in New York, which is why she’s offering you a few brief recommendations after the jump.
By La Cieca
Is Peter Gelb wearing too many hats? Anthony Tommasini seems to think so, adding that one of those headpieces in particular is ill-fitting and might perhaps more flatteringly perch upon some other head. Call La Cieca suspicious, but she thinks the timing of this piece is hardly an accident.
By La Cieca
Even as sinister gossip hinted to the contrary, the Met successfully completed negotiations with the stagehands’ union last night, averting the possibility of a job action next week. According to a source close to the Met, Peter Gelb sent out an email confirming the contract sometime after 1:00 this morning:
By La Cieca
Legendary soprano Sena Jurinac, one of the most beloved artists at the Vienna State Opera, died yesterday. She was 90. [via AP]
By La Cieca
La Cieca hears that the premiere of a new production may be marred. The reason? The company might have to perform the Paris version of this opera.
By La Cieca
Only because I am a member of the You Can Never Have Too Much Callas School of Opera Listening can I recommend EMI’s new release The Callas Effect. The beautifully packaged production is the size of a small paperback book and consists of two CDs with 29 arias sung by Callas plus a new 70-minute…
By Henson Keys
Giovanni Simone Mayr was one of the most important musical figures of his day, a man Rossini referred to as the “father of Italian opera” whom Napoleon personally lobbied to come work in Paris. Though he wrote nearly 70 operas and taught Donizetti and Bellini, the Bavarian-born composer had the misfortune of hitting his peak…
By Adriel
Slim British tenor Ian Bostridge arrives in town for a recital on November 28 featuring Thomas Adès‘ “Darknesse Visible,” as well as the work upon which it “reflects,” the John Dowland song “In darkness let me dwell,” as a sort of prelude to an evening of Heinrich Heine settings including the Dichterliebe. And you, cher…
By La Cieca
“…to a certain degree, good critics are no longer necessary to find. The phrase ‘Everybody’s a critic’ has taken on a universal cast. The internet encourages people to share their opinions with the world. In the theatre, the buzz created by chatroom chatters has become increasingly important to a show’s reputation before it opens. There…
By La Cieca
As the dear Marquise de Merteuil found out to her sorrow, the only worse than not being talked about was being talked about. But worst of all, cher public, is having no place to go for general interest and off-topic conversation. So here you are: your place to promenade during this week’ intermission.
By La Cieca
Miss Bobolink accepts the challenge: It’s Margaret-and-Will Day!
By La Cieca
