Parterre Box

Concerto barocco

Christopher Corwin on three stylish sopranos delighting audiences live in New York and on recording in a trio of new releases.

By Christopher Corwin 14 comments

The Talk of the Town

Belle Raggio says you must watch Maytime

It’s a total fraud, but I have always loved Maytime‘s “Csaritza” a fake “MGM” opera based on themes from Tchaikovsky‘s 5th symphony.

By Belle Raggio 86 comments

thoughtful thinking

Opera injustice

Hunding, of Die Walküre notoriety, is the most misunderstood character in opera.

By Gary Beck 40 comments

Broadcast

Antony and Cleopatra

A live broadcast from New York

By Parterre Box 176 comments

The Talk of the Town

Ortrud Jones says you must watch Excalibur

A brutal, chilling, gory final scene leading to a triumphant and goose bumps inducing final moments.

By Ortrud Jones 46 comments

Broadcast

Turandot

And a more recent live recording, this time from London featuring Sondra Radvanovsky and SeokJong Baek

By Parterre Box 10 comments

Broadcast

Turandot

Zubin Mehta conducts a classic broadcast from 1966 featuring Birgit Nilsson, Franco Corelli, Mirella Freni, and Bonaldo Giaiotti

By Parterre Box 100 comments

The Talk of the Town

“Ebben, ne andro lontana” sung by Wihelmenia Wiggins Fernandez in Diva is a gorgeous woman in a beautiful dress singing a wonderful area in a legitimate concert venue. Great singing in my favorite French film.

By DC K 122 comments

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Wet ‘n wild

Parterre Box invites you to cool off with a dip in the lake alongside Sonya Yoncheva and Pavel Černoch in Rusalka.

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Troy and Troy again

For those with Odyssey fever, this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag item features a performance of another ancient epic: Les Troyens with Russell Thomas.

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Bass desires

Alexander Köpeczi, currently plying leading roles in two operas in Santa Fe and, rumor has it, the life of one prominent soprano, is the object of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Bel canto snarl for bel canto snarl

Rising stars Chelsea Lehnea and Ricardo José Rivera are the protagonists of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Wie tönender Schall schlug’s an mein Ohr

It’s a busy summer for Vida Miknevičiūtė and Eric Cutler, the subjects of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Noch mein’ ich mir selber so sicher zu sein

Elina Garanča’s aborted first Ariadne may have been the headline item at the Salzburg Festival next month, but this week Parterre Box features the Zerbinetta, Ziyi Dai.

Grand Tier Grab Bag

Girls interrupted

parterre box presents for your comparing pleasure excerpts of three Italian sopranos trying their (poker) hands at Puccini’s Minnie: Carmen Giannatasio, Chiara Isotton, and Anna Pirozzi

By Parterre Box 23 comments

The Talk of the Town

David Phillips says you must watch Fitzcarraldo

Watching Fitzcarraldo at a very young age obviously turned me into a baby opera queen.

By David Phillips 58 comments

Breaking

Nick of time

Bass-baritone Nicholas Brownlee is the winner of the $50,000 2025 Richard Tucker Award

By Parterre Box 13 comments

Performance Review

Down for the Count

An uneven new cast can’t dim the glow of Richard Eyre‘s incisive Le nozze di Figaro at the Met

By Dan Johnson 12 comments

The Talk of the Town

Christopher Corwin says you must watch anything by Max Ophuls

Max Ophuls, one of the greatest film directors, made masterpieces in French, German, English and Italian, as well as an amusing comedy in Dutch; he also clearly loved opera.

By Christopher Corwin 143 comments

Breaking

Dealt a bad hand

Brian Jadge will be replaced by Brandon Jovanovich in the upcoming revival of The Queen of Spades, announces the Met press office

By Parterre Box 25 comments

Podcast / Chris's Cache

And ten for Mahler!

This week’s Chris’s Cache presents an early May banquet of ten fine singers in eight vocal works of Gustav Mahler.

By Christopher Corwin 23 comments

The Talk of the Town

Astyanax says you must watch Sunday Bloody Sunday

The terzettino from Così fan tutte makes an unexpected and unforgettable appearance in John Schlesinger‘s 1971 Sunday Bloody Sunday.

By Astyanax 67 comments

Talk of the Town

The Talk of the Town

Next season I’m excited for La fanciulla del West

I’m looking forward to the Met’s new production of Puccini’s La fanciulla del West.

The Talk of the Town

Some filth or dementia from Leyla Gender-Bender

It is only a concert performance, but no one seems to have told them that; and thank the heavens for that!

The Talk of the Town

Some filth or dementia from piotr

Pure dementia. Magda Olivero in the finale to Fedora.

The Talk of the Town

Some filth or dementia from Darby Fegan

What is more demented than a thrilling performance of Strauss’s Elektra?

The Talk of the Town

Some filth or dementia from Sanford

This Strauss is demented in the best way possible.

The Talk of the Town

Some filth or dementia from Ben Miller

They should sell pay-per-view tickets to this like WWE.

Performance Review

Strawberry blonde forever

The Met Orchestra Chamber Ensemble’s Das Lied von der Erde skirts the sublime at Carnegie Hall

By Dan Johnson 13 comments

The Talk of the Town

Peter Russell says you must watch Goin’ to Town

As opera and operetta “had a moment” in major Hollywood motion pictures starring the likes of Lawrence Tibbett, Jeannette MacDonald, and Nelson Eddy during the Great Depression, it made perfect sense that a canny showman like Mae West would want a piece of the action.

By Peter Russell 89 comments

Book Review, Performance Review

Frick in the sheets

The Jupiter Ensemble with Lea Desandre and Anthony Roth Costanzo offers sleek and sexy HIP inaugurates the Frick Collection’s new Stephen A. Schwartzman Auditorium

By Dan Johnson 4 comments