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.
La Cieca now would like to extend a special offer to performing arts organizations in the Greater New York are who would like to join the parterre.com family of advertisers.
Her appearance is incongruous to this setting.
A bio in need of perhaps a little minor retouching.
The “gown of a thousand mirrors” arrived in New York Wednesday, direct from Rochburn, near Monte Carlo. The Chicago Grand Company’s Mary Garden brought it, and the steamer La France made port with both.
For your perusal and social planning, cher public, parterre’s 2013-2014 New York Opera Calendar is now online and current through the end of the season.
Mark your calendars and set your alarm clocks, cher public, for 13 October 2013 at 18:00 CEST (that is, 2:00 PM in New York City) when individual tickets for the 2014 Bayreuth Festival will go on sale online.
Take a nice long break, cher public, to discuss off-topic and general interest subjects.
Congratulations and best wishes to Kennedy Center President Michael M. Kaiser and and economist John Roberts, who will be married tonight at the performing arts center in a ceremony officiated by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Teresa Berganza is the latest superannuated superstar to jump on the “I hate regie” bandwagon.
Which opera company has informed a budding composer they are willing to add his new opera to their repertoire for next season… so long as said composer can kick in the estimated $2 million it would cost to present his work?
Which veteran artist delivers doubly sad news this week, canceling an opera that was written for her?
Let’s take a moment, liebes Publikum, to discuss off-topic and general interest subjects.
Our Own JJ (right) reports he is ready and relatively un-jetlagged for Das Rheingold tonight at Bayreuth. He'll have comments afterward.
Opera Teen (pictured) approves of this summer’s program at the Glimmerglass Festival.
Among the highlights of the first performance of Camille was the fact that its only solo was a Parisian ballad sung by ‘Our Mary’ Garden atop a table in her fashionable salon and its only chorus a few ribald lines by a roomful of guests who had drunk enough champagne to be feeling pretty gay.
What other company indeed but the Bayerische Staatsoper would commission David LaChapelle to photograph Diana Damrau for their portrait gallery?
Until the Baron de Varville returns, cher public, take this opportunity to indulge in discussion of off-topic and general interest subjects.
Rupert Christiansen (not pictured) writes, “…a right old mash-up of Meistersinger, confusing, contorting and complicating something which should communicate with radiant emotional and intellectual simplicity.”
La Cieca and DeCaffarrelli unanimously hail Trubadur as winner of the “Ladies in the Dark” vocal ID competition.
“An earlier version of this post referred incorrectly to the gender of the mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton. Ms. Barton is a woman.”
La Cieca has been wining, dining and otherwise wooing her Met connection (pictured above) and he (or is it she?) has come across with some tidbits about upcoming seasons at Casa Gelb.
In a starling last-minute change of programming, the Salzburg Festival has canceled all further performances of the critically-reviled Peter Stein production of Don Carlos. Weltstars Anja Harteros and Jonas Kaufmann will instead perform My Fair Lady (pictured).
“In her first television acting job [Dame Kiri te Kanawa] portrays Dame Nellie Melba, her fellow antipodean soprano, whose purity of voice inspired a peach-based pudding.”
You can imagine what the next few days were like.
Tell us: What’s your favorite Verdi performance?
Hasten thee to feed another quarter of conversation for The Talk of the Town!
