All right, so Renée Fleming says she’s not retiring from opera at the moment, and who should know better than she herself? But can someone please explain why in this interview (right after the jump), less than seven months ago, she seems to imply that, in fact, she is leaving opera behind? A person less charitable than La Cieca might be forgiven for harboring the suspicion that the luminous mother of two has been trying to have it both ways, i.e., to whip up the excitement of an operatic farewell, meanwhile indicating that she might just possibly be amenable to being asked for more.
L’ambigua
All right, so Renée Fleming says she’s not retiring from opera at the moment, and who should know better than she herself?
By La Cieca 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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Tell us: What was the best of 2025?
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.