Sister sister
“Like New Yorkers, opera tends to flee the city in summer. But a taut production of Dialogues of the Carmelites by dell’Arte Opera Ensemble offers a reason to brave a steamy August weekend in Manhattan.” [New York Post]
“Like New Yorkers, opera tends to flee the city in summer. But a taut production of Dialogues of the Carmelites by dell’Arte Opera Ensemble offers a reason to brave a steamy August weekend in Manhattan.” [New York Post]
“The spare production by Victoria Crutchfield — daughter of conductor…”
So who is Mrs. Crutchfield?
,,,maybe Mrs. C. prefers to remain out of the spotlight—and is home, baking cookies for Will and Victoria..?
What frigging difference could it possibly be as to WHO she is,,,are you sending her a gift for her birthday, eh?..
Apropos of Dialogues, a young thrilling Maria Ewing:
Did you like Victoria Crutchfield’s work enough to not qualify her with her admittedly talented father or must you treat her like a second class entity, while pretending to be in sort sort of faux know? She’s a grown adult with talent of her own merit. Treat her like one.
@iknowthings: Do you know how newspaper stories get written? This is a newspaper review, not the teacher’s note on a term paper. The fact that she’s the daughter of a prominent conductor is something that might be of interest to the readers.
Yes, I do know how they get written. Painfully so in the Post, it seems. In this one, I like how he slams nearly all of their high notes, but then says it was a good evening. Funny, I like high notes, as well as low ones, to sound good to make a solid evening for me.
Iknowthings
“…pretending to be in sort sort of faux know…”
There is knowing and knowing. Also faux knowing, it seems.
Ah, I entirely misread you. I thought you were objecting to the mention of Ms. Crutchfield’s parentage. No, I was wrong: your problem was that the reviewer found the performance satisfying, even while noting certain shortcomings. Quite right--a performance is either perfect of its entirely, or not worthy of the remotest bit of praise. Thanks for the clarification.
um, perfect in its entirety…
You were right the first time.
Though I don’t exactly lean on James Jorden for my favorite writing on solid advice on performances to attend or those to avoid.
So your real point, if I read you correctly, is that the mentions of Crutchfield’s parentage as well as the singers’ high notes are both deplorable, inasmuch as they appear under JJ’s byline?
Some of y’all nasty. Does internet anonymity encourage this? You talk like this to the wrong person and that person might open up an industrial size can of whoop ass.
I don’t see a problem here. I’ve read many reviews over the years that informed/reminded the reader that director Giancarlo del Monaco is the son of a famous tenor, or that two singers in a production were married in real life etc. I never thought anyone was being demeaned. It was just background that might be of interest.
I did wonder, though…the singer in the role of the Old Prioress played the death scene with stoic dignity? I didn’t see the performance, but is that appropriate or even possible with this music/text? I thought the idea was that they all *expect* Madame de Croissy to die with stoic dignity, but she’s in such pain that she becomes completely unraveled, and her caretakers try to keep the others from hearing her. She gets “the wrong death.”
Dialogues of the Carmelites is a great piece of musical drama. It works whether produced by a major opera company such as the the Met, a smaller opera company such as Central City Opera or in student productions. I have seen it in all three settings and it moves me as much today as when I saw it at the Met for the first time almost 40 years ago. Dialogues is what I am most looking forward to at the Met this season.
Ah, would that “y’all” were talking about the production instead of arguing about the review. For another take on the production (did anyone besides Mr. Jordan actually see it?) For the record, Ms. Crutchfield’s proud father was in the audience, just back from Italy, and her joined the production relatively at the last moment to fill an unexpected gap in the cast. For an alternate opinion of the production, you might read Zachary Woolfe’s column today. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/27/arts/music/dialogues-des-carmelites-by-dellarte-opera-ensemble.html?_r=1
…sorry for the distracted syntax in the last post…