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Cher Public

  • manou: Another Pap smear? 8:14 PM
  • armerjacquino: I had better not share my opinion of the Royal family- it got me into a lot of trouble in my first... 8:06 PM
  • manou: …over the French diction, Betsy? 8:06 PM
  • Camille: Pop opera le pervert—just like Silva in the last act of Ernani, you always show up to foul the... 8:01 PM
  • Betsy_Ann_Bobolink: Damn! I’m crying. 7:45 PM
  • Camille: That is an interesting account, Mme. Manou, particularly as it is a first-hand eye witness one, and thank... 7:32 PM
  • zinka: httpv://www.youtub e.com/watch?v=m4DP F6kA0aI How can ONE NOTE summarize a career?? ANYONE who can do what... 6:46 PM
  • manou: Nigel Farrago 6:44 PM

George at the bat

UPDATE: Complete press release after the jump! You know La Cieca will be following NYCO’s press conference starting today at 1:00 pm. The Twittering community will carry live updates from the event, and you, the cher public, can follow the tweets after the jump.  Read more »

Sir Charles Mackerras 1925-2010

© Zdenek ChrapekThe Australian conductor and authority on the operas of Janácek and Mozart died earlier today in London. He was 84.

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A minute and a huff

dumontLa Cieca presents an open letter from a parterre box reader. Read more »

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A gala day is enough for me

Hey, remember how New York City Opera threw this big gala last fall to salute the billionaire teabagger, Astroturfer and enemy of Net Neutrality David H. Koch? Now, La Cieca is sure that in the intervening months you have been asking yourself, “What could NYCO possibly do to top this ill-advised exaltation of someone who really doesn’t deserve to be honored? Who could NYCO possibly find who would be a less popular and appropriate target for veneration?” I warn you, cher public, you are not going to believe who the honoree is for the spring gala. 

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Overload

“Mr. Okulitch and Mr. Hardy have matching black briefs over which they each wear half of a single suit: Giovanni, the jacket; Leporello, the pants. When they switch identities, they trade suit parts, again a vivid metaphor, and made more striking because both singers are so buff.” [NYT]

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Where’s Osvaldo?

The Metropolitan Opera commission Daedalus by Osvaldo Golijov seems to have slipped through the cracks, for now at least. According to the virtually always accurate Met Futures by Brad Wilber, the premiere of the work, planned for the 2011-2012 season, is not going to take place.

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And then La Cieca clicked “close tab”

“The answer, he decided, was obvious: an opera. In typical Burning Man fashion, as he was standing in line at the port-a-potties, describing this epiphany to…” [CNET]

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Amo, amas, amat

La Cieca is delighted to wake up to some wonderful, uplifting news. No, not about the balloon boy; turns out that was a hoax anyway. This “rescue” is for real. Amore Opera, successor to downtown institution Amato Opera, will present its first full production, Puccini’s La Bohème opening on Friday, December 11th at the Connelly Opera House, 220 E. 4th Street, New York City and continuing until Sunday, January 3rd, 2010. The company will continue performances in the new year with The Merry Widow, The Magic Flute and Hansel and Gretel, as well as a series of capsule “Family Briefs” [...]

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