A strapping fellow with a plangent and sizable voice
On this day in 1968 tenor Plácido Domingo made his official Metropolitan Opera debut as Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur.
Recent Stories
The press representative doth protest too much, methinks
This overabundance of detail serves only to set La Cieca wondering who protested Ms. Davis.
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).
Wait and see
Erwartung and Bluebeard’s Castle returned to Lincoln Center Thursday night in a musically scintillating if theatrically mild double-bill by the New York Philharmonic.
Roman holiday
A brace of Handel operas at the George Enescu International Festival.
Who’s that woman?
Born on this day in 1923 actress and singer Mary McCarty.
Slow curtain, the end
La Cieca has discovered a document of Plácido Domingo‘s faute de mieux Metropolitan Opera farewell performance.
Portrait of a Lady on fire
My blood sure boiled at this revival of the Met’s utterly punchable production of Macbeth.
Boy interrupted
Rising tenor TBA is now scheduled for the role of Alfredo in La traviata at the Met, replacing Vittorio Grigolo, who has been suspended for personnel reasons.
Pretty little lyre
Starring Jamie Barton, Orfeo ed Euridice returns to the Met next month for the first time in more than a decade so “Trove Thursday” offers two complete live versions of Gluck’s masterwork.
“It’s best when you improvise”
Born on this day in 1898 composer George Gershwin.
High flying, adored
Forty years ago today a new musical, Evita, opened at the Broadway Theatre, beginning a run of 1,567 performances.
When a man loves a woman
At the Met’s performance of Manon Tuesday evening, Michael Fabiano made as good a case as any for renaming the opera Chevalier des Grieux.
Domingo jumps (or was pushed?)
“The Met and Mr. Domingo are in agreement that he needed to step down”
I’m so happy I can’t stop crying
On this day in 1982 Eva Marton made her Met role debut as La Gioconda opposite Plácido Domingo, Bruna Baglioni and Cornell MacNeil.
Grigolo, a groper?
Vittorio Grigolo has been suspended from the Royal Opera House’s touring production of Faust in Japan.
All I cared about was Bess
Opera’s latest superstar, Angel Blue, in a compleat and enthralling portrayal, gloriously sung and rivetingly acted.
Porgy and Bess
The first livestream of the 2019-2020 Metropolitan Opera Season begins at 5:30 for the cher public’s delight!
And when I die
For the academics who may be reading this: Let Me Die exists in a confounding but intriguing interpretive liminal space.
Thus let few thanks be paid
Kudos to Opera Philadelphia for programming Handel’s Semele in its exceptionally interesting and wide-ranging Festival 2019; unfortunately, despite an extraordinary cast, James Darrah’s drably dull production doomed it.
Slam and slam again
On this day in 1982 the Larry Grossman / Betty Comden / Adolph Green musical A Doll’s Life opened on Broadway and closed after five performances.
Un Eden di delizia
Happy 78th birthday soprano Anna Tomowa-Sintow.
Total ellipse
Employing the most slimly elegant resources, Festival O’s Denis & Katya is a monumental, dramatically shattering event.