By La Cieca 
La Cieca has once again hauled out the holly, climbed down the chimney, sliced up the tinsel and hung some fruitcake on that evergreen bough… which can only mean one thing: the Parterre Holiday Store is open for business! (Note that, as with all Amazon purchases linked from parterre.com, the site will receive a handsome kickback commission on every product you purchase.)
A few words of encouragement from your doyenne follow the jump.
James Jorden (who wrote under the names "La Cieca" and "Our Own JJ") was the founder and editor of parterre box. During his 20 year career as an opera critic he wrote for the New York Times, Opera, Gay City News, Opera Now, Musical America and the New York Post. He also raised his voice in punditry on National Public Radio. From time to time he directed opera, including three unsuccessful productions of Don Giovanni. He also contributed a regular column on opera for the New York Observer. James died in October 2023.
Parterre Box concludes the thrilling first year of Talk of the Town by inviting your lightning rod opinions on several more categories of operatic argumentation.
