Recent Stories
“Old prices!”
On this day in 1809 the second Theatre Royal, Covent Garden (designed by Robert Smirke) opened with a performance of Macbeth followed by a musical entertainment called The Quaker.
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).
Red-headed woman
Sills at the peak of her powers and Handel’s 1743 secular oratorio make a perfect match.
Witches’ honor!
On this day in 1964 Bewitched premiered on ABC.
“We’re looking at everything”
Naming rights, Sunday performances, an extension of the Met’s lobby forward into Lincoln Center Plaza . . . Peter Gelb puts all that and more on the table.
“Et puis tout le monde a pris un beau long somme”
Emue aux larmes, la diva lui a donné son consentement.
La luce è fatta muta
On this day in 1977, Maria Callas left this world. Do you remember where you were?
Where will one be seen?
So, cher public, as you air out your aigrettes and polish your parure in preparation for the 2015 fall season, which amongst the many offerings, uh, offered will be your must-sees?
Leave it to cleaver
If I’d gotten an hour less sleep you’d now find me mixing everything up and writing about Mrs. Lovett making her entrance on a bronze horse like Peter the Great.
Slash by night
Enthusiasts of Janácek’s opera will want to pick up this video immediately.
Worth the candle
One of the glorious perks of my job, which is selling luxury cruises, is that on a semi-occasional basis I get to sample the wares myself—purely from an educational standpoint, mind you.
¡Riégueme!
Happy 69th birthday actress Carmen Maura.
Before sunset
In honor of the upcoming Met Opening Night, here’s a singer identification quiz featuring, for a change, music for a tenor: the climactic phrase from Otello’s third act monologue.
A boom with a view
“It’s in the ‘Behind the Scenes’ section of the Lady Gaga issue, involving Brian Mitchell, archivist and occasional child wrangler with the Houston Grand Opera.”
A desert breeze whispering a lullaby
The studio opera recording is a rare beast these days and its arrival always a cause for celebration.
Il nome dello straniero
While they seemed made for each other as stage partners, Montserrat Caballé and Luciano Pavarotti sang relatively few performances together.
Cheesecake
On this day in 1985 The Golden Girls, starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, debuted on NBC.
If you wanna grind it wait till you refined it
Here Danielle de Niese throws an ecdysiastical twist into a medley from The Sound of Music.
Der Höschenkavalier
“Jonas Kaufmann, the German singer who performed Rule Britannia, looked delighted as he was pelted with lacey undergarments from female fans.”
Des Goldes Schmuck schmähte er nicht…
The clear winner of the “Dinner for Schmuck” competition is DharmaBray‘s succulent menu.
Poor wan Rusalka
The winter 2014 final run of the Met’s first/only Rusalka production (a new one is scheduled in a few seasons) seemed both a nod to the theater’s past and a hint of its future.
There is nothing wrong with your television set
On this day in 1963 The Outer Limits premiered on ABC TV.