Peazy weazy
Born on this day in 1890 comedian and author Groucho Marx.
Questo e Quello
“You never start out being a star”
Happy 82nd birthday Julie Andrews.
Brotherly love
When I moved back to Philadelphia a few years ago, I reached out to Albert Innaurato.
Broadcast: Vanessa
A live recording of the Barber/Menotti weepie from the 2016 Wexford Festival
And making the grade is our duty, you see
On this day in 1954 Sandy Wilson‘s musical The Boy Friend opened at the Royale Theater, to run 483 performances.
“I am not carefree.”
Born on this day in 1942 singer and actress Madeline Kahn.
Dark matter
In Schikaneder’s patriarchal cosmology, darkness is the province of emotional women—not just the erratic fury of the Queen of the Night, but the pathetic supplications of Pamina as well.
My metaphor was drawn from genocides
Peter Gelb offering voluntary buyouts to a couple of dozen employees is precisely the same thing as Nazis murdering hundreds of people.
Debuts and farewells
Arabella with Wolfgang Sawallisch conducting a prime-time 1980s Munich cast.
“He was sort of the Brando of music”
Rest in peace, dear Albert.
You were dead, you know
Lyric Opera of Chicago opened its 2017-18 season on Saturday evening with a new production of Gluck’s Orphee et Eurydice in the 1774 Paris version.
Show time
Born on this day in 1901 television host Ed Sullivan.
Albert Innaurato 1947-2017
We have just heard the sad news that playwright and critic Albert Innaurato has died.
Drunk history
Last night was my fourth or fifth wade into the slough of Bartlett Sher’s production of Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann at the Met since its premiere in 2009.
Golden rule
Happy 60th birthday opera director Peter Sellars.
Better call Gaul
Bellini’s Norma Monday evening didn’t at all improve on the production it was replacing.
Mad skills
On this day in 1835 Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor premiered in Naples.
Broadcast: Norma
The performance and the obligatory parterre chat both begin at 6:30 PM EDT.
Una vittima della sventura
Remember the disastrous 2010 Traviata at the Met, “conducted” by Leonard Slatkin?
Star and garters
No amount of scholarly diligence has kept Les contes d’Hoffmann from being the messiest of all standard-repertory messes.
Once again
Happy 68th birthday filmmaker Pedro Almodovar.
“Singing is a form of admitting that I’m alive”
Born on this day in 1927 tenor Alfredo Kraus.
Py shy
This black-box recital was an aggressively Gallic affair
Broadcast: Otello
In a classic live performance from more then 50 years ago, Montserrat Caballé is Desdemona to the Otello of James McCracken.
I’ll take the fall
The days are getting shorter, but you can keep the prattle going this fall’s Talk of the Town! You will, you can, you must join in the discussion about: Great mezzo soprano performances (October),
Gained in translation (November), Teleport me back to… (December).