Your Own La Cieca has emerged from the tomb semi-retirement to present the 2014 Pubie Awards for outstanding achievement in the field of opera and opera-related entertainment in New York and various points north. You, the public, voted, and your decisions, such as they are, are final.

May she have the envelopes, please?

And the winners are…

Best new production at the Met: Werther

Worst new production at the Met: Die Fledermaus (by a whopping 57% of the vote!)

Best Revival at the Met: Die Frau Ohne Schatten

Worst Revival at the Met: Andrea Chenier

Best Non-Met Staged Production: Era la notte (White Light Festival)

Best Concert Performance: Peter Grimes (St. Louis Symphony)

Best Performance in a Diva Role: Anna Netrebko in Eugene Onegin

Worst Performance in a Diva Role: Patricia Racette in Andrea Chenier

Best Performance in a Divo Role: Jonas Kaufmann in Werther (57% of the vote)

Worst Performance in a Divo Role: Alexei Tanovitski in Eugene Onegin

Best Performance in a Non-Diva Role: Stephanie Blythe in Falstaff

Poison Ivy Presents the Antonio Salieri Memorial Award for Outstanding Mediocrity: Ramon Vargas in L’elisir d’amore

Maestro of the Year: James Levine

Most Significant Cancellation: Juan Diego Florez in La Cenerentola

Einspringer of the Year: Javier Camarena in La Cenerentola (65% of the vote)

Debut of the Year: Olga Peretyatko in I puritani

Comeback of the Year: James Levine

La Cieca

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.

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