March 2006
La Cieca has just learned that Erika Sunnegardh will sing tomorrow’s Fidelio broadcast, replacing Karita Mattila, who is under the weather.
That Eveready Rabbit of a diva, Montserrat Caballe, is going to camp it up once more at the Vienna State Opera when she makes her role debut as the Duchesse de Krackenthorp (the Ljuba Welitsch part) in Laurent Pelly‘s production of Donizetti’s La Fille du Regiment in April 2007. This production, starring Natalie Dessay and…
Which veteran Met star had his nose buried so deep in his score that he collided clumsily with a chorister at a final rehearsal? The low-voiced divo erupted in threats, but calmed down soon enough when he realized that he was yelling at the AGMA Rep! Which soprano now has a large hole in her…
It does La Cieca’s withered old heart good to know that, yes, indeed, the filth just keeps on coming. Here’s a selection from a CD by Peter Anders Jr., who inherited his name (and that’s about it) from his famous father.
More photos are in from the Francesca Zambello Rheingold at the WNO. Pictured below: Fasolt and Fafner.
Which star canceled his Met season due to a very “committed” performance… of his own personal Mad Scene?
Devotees of Wagner’s Ring and the Fritz Lang Siegfried silent film (not to mention all those Lord of the Rings fanboys) will find at least something to enjoy in the miniseries The Dark Kingdom, beginning tonight on The SciFi Network. Now, La Cieca admits that the bio for the guy who plays Siegfried begins less…
Those of you who are enjoying La Cieca’s video clips, as presented on Google Video and YouTube now can have a copy of your very own. A new web-based service called KeepVid lets you download any video on these sites to your hard drive. (Note that many of these videos are in the .flv format,…
Among the extra-musical delights in the New York City Opera’s production of Mark Adamo‘s Lysistrata, definitely front and center is baritone James Bobick, who rocks the role of Kinesias. (He is seen pictured with Jennifer Rivera. Try looking a little up and to the right and you’ll see her.) Mr. Bobick next appears at the…
According to the indispensable Met Futures page, the role of Marie Antoinette in the Met’s 2010 revival of The Ghosts of Versailles will be sung by Angela Gheorghiu! And next season will see the debut of the singer with the best operatic name ever: Nicola Rossi-Giordano.
Leonie Rysanek sings the final scene from Salome in a performance of the Vienna State Opera on tour in Japan (October 2, 1980). Hans Bierer is Herodes and the conductor is Heinrich Hollreiser. (And remember, cher public, if you’re enjoying this content, visit the Amazon Honor System to show your appreciation!)
First word on Francesca Zambello‘s “American iconography” production of Der Ring des Nibelungen sounds moderately dire. Our top secret mole The Concerned Wagnerian reports from somewhere in the vicinity of the Washington National Opera: “Alberich is panning for gold in a western getup. The Rhinemaidens reveal their gold as a large quilt. Yes, a quilt.…
Well, no, of course, there’s no such thing as too many tenors, but it’s good to know we have so many high male voices around these days. One from the present (Rolando Villazon) and one from the past (Beniamino Gigli) are featured in Ed Rosen’s recently-debuted podcast, and one for the future is parterre favorite…
Next week, you, mon cher public, along with the rest of le tout New York will of course attend Madame Vera Galupe-Borszkh‘s 20th Annual Farewell Recital at Symphony Space. In preparation for this epochal event, La Cieca hopes you will listen to her interview with Mme. Vera’s alter ego, Ira Siff, on Unnatural Acts of…
Some sudden cast changes may be in store among the Met’s low-voiced singers. Is Dimitri Kavrakos about to jump into Padre Guardiano’s sandals, replacing Vitalij Kowaljow? And what about Philip Ens — he’s in town for Luisa Miller, but is he going to make a surprise appearance in Fidelio as well?
Do any of you out there ever wonder exactly what it is an “Artistic Administrator” does?
It looks like the NYCO is going to one-up Gelb’s Met by nabbing Kristin Chenoweth first. The Broadway divette is in talks to star as Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance for a 16-performance stint at the State Theater in March 2007.
On dit that America’s leading verista, Aprile Millo, will sing her first Manon Lescaut in the fall of 2006. La Cieca is not at liberty to divulge the venue, other than to say that it will not be in New York City. Rumor has it that the process of replacing James Levine as conductor for…
According to an article in the New York Times, James Levine will cancel all his remaining Met performances this season, including a tour to Japan. He is scheduled to have surgery to repair and injured rotator cuff on March 20. House management is currently scrambling to find replacements for Levine’s characteristically heavy workload: preparation of…
Unnatural Acts of Opera presents a tribute to soprano Anna Moffo, who died Thursday night.
Tenor troubles continue: Neil Shicoff is out of the Monday prima of the Met’s Luisa Miller. As at the dress rehearsal, Eduardo Villa will jump in. Veronica Villaroel has of course replaced Barbara Frittoli for most of the run; however, the final two performances still list the ubiquitous TBA in the role of Luisa. La…
La Cieca has just heard that Neil Shicoff has canceled the dress rehearsal of Luisa Miller at the Met; Eduardo Villa (cover for the run) will do it. And La Cieca has heard further that Sergio Blazquez, scheduled to make his NYCO debut in La boheme in April, is having visa problems, so Gerard Powers…
Our editor JJ‘s article introducing La traviata is now available on the New York City Opera’s website. La Cieca is so cheered by this good news that she can, for the moment, refrain from ranting at length about the de-retirement of the egregious Dr. Miller, whose production of L’elisir d’amore will rear its ugly head…
So here we are at the final act of Giordano’s Fedora, and all those nasty little secrets everyone’s been telling throughout the opera are about to be exposed! Marcella Pobbe stars as the mysterious Princess Fedora Romazoff in a performance from the Teatro La Fenice, February 9, 1968. And as a bonus, YouTube video of…
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.
