Video
The spectacular dramatic soprano was born 74 years ago today in Pontnewynydd, Wales. She is seen below in one of her less familiar (though no less effective) roles, Hanna in Die Lustige Witwe.
Were the Swan of Catania as immortal as his melodies, he would be would be 209 years old today! Admirers of the “King of Cantilena” are invited to follow La Cieca’s example and post YouTube clips of favorite Bellini morceaux.
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.
The original gay pirate is (sort of) 223 years old, since the Prague premiere of Mozart’s masterpiece took place on October 29, 1787.
At the risk of “pulling a Kathy Lee,” here’s a preliminary to tonight’s Met performance of Les Contes d’Hoffmann dedicated to Dame Joan Sutherland.
Congratulations to parterre fave Andrew Richards, who was featured in the staging named Best Opera Production of 2009-2010 in Opernwelt magazine: Verdi’s Macbeth, directed by Krzysztof Warlikowski at La Monnaie in Brussels.
Tamara Mumford (Flosshilde in Das Rheingold) explains the concept of the Met’s new production of the Ring.
Country wailer Patsy Cline and ex-farmgirl Birgit Nilsson.
And now, cher public, let’s put today’s singers, the Contemporary Divas, under the microscope. How do they stack up?
Maria Callas died 33 years ago, September 16, 1977.
Our Own JJ will have a news item or two tomorrow, but until then, a couple of YouTube clips follow: a remake of a classic and a reimagining of a classic. La Cieca is confident the cher public (pictured) will have opinions.
La Cieca has managed to obtain a few minutes of video, pirated at great personal risk, from a dress rehearsal of the Met’s new production of Das Rheingold.
That archetypical Leo, Mae West, was born 117 (or so) years ago today, on August 17, 1893.
La Cieca is always delighted when a legendary lady of the lyric stage reinvents herself. For example, who ever would have expected Montserrat Caballe to make a comeback as Radames?
The dramatic soprano (and soon to be belter!) celebrates her golden birthday today.
We may have a contender in the category of Most Overdone Camp Diva Crossover Hair Extension.
What a concept, or La Cieca should say what a concept! This is Regie at its finest and most boldly satirical, genius that makes Graham Vick look like two-day-old steak frites. For this production of Puccini’s Manon Lescaut, the director (unnamed, alas in the YouTube clip below) utilizes the cinematic convention of the flash-forward in…
The all-American diva was born 100 years ago today!
The legendary conductor and the protean mezzo-soprano were born on July 3, in 1930 and 1939 respectively.
Since last night marked the debut of history’s newest and perkiest interpreter of the role of Norma, and (more to the point) since Bellini’s druid priestess will grace the woods of Katonah, NY during the month of July, La Cieca thought it would be exciting to organize a YouTube competition on the theme of bel…
In honor of the 40th anniversary of Gay Pride (the 40th official anniversary, anyway) coming up this weekend, La Cieca proposes this week’s YouTube contest theme: “Tout gai!”
La Cieca proposes a new weekly competition: she provides the theme, you provide the examples. This week: “Now, that’s how it’s done!”
The tutelary goddess of parterre.com performs a few phrases of La bohème — in 2010.
The tuneful Peruvian was born June 9, 1891.
After the jump, a preview glimpse of Deborah Voigt and company in San Francisco Opera’s production of La fanciulla del West.
