Recent Stories
Our Own Sra. Flora del Rio, benevolent rhinemaiden of the Rio Grande, shimmered into a press conference at Santa Fe this morning and quickly shimmered out, there being but modest news to report on SFeO Season 2010. However, Flora sent this grist for your mills: Madama Butterfly, The Magic Flute, The Tales of Hoffmann, Life…
Life sometimes does imitate art, or anyway bad art. La Cieca notes in today’s New York Post a story about a wedding interrupted when the bridegroom’s boss suddenly shouted that she had slept with the groom. As any hack librettist will tell you, this is a great excuse for the big third-act concertato.
The New York Times, the Metropolitan Opera, and Comedy Central! Genius!
A sharp-eyed member of the cher public writes: I attended a performance of Damnation of Faust (with a magnificent Polenzani and Ketelsen) in St. Louis this past Saturday night. When I arrived, there was Christine Brewer in the lobby looking quite well. No cane, no walker, no crutches, no limp, no nothing. I walked up…
La Cieca hears vague rumors from here and there that there something major is going to happen with New York CIty Opera this week, possibly as early as today. According to an insider over the weekend “wagons [were] circling,” perhaps in reaction to the admission that the company has spent down over 2/3 of its endowment in…
It took giocomopuccini only minutes to guess that last time’s Regie puzzler was Bellini’s Norma, though La Cieca is still open to suggestions about what the eggs are supposed to mean. Perhaps these photos will keep you guessing a little longer.Â
La Cieca just returned from the HD of The Audition, a documentary about the 2007 Met National Council Auditions. The film puts her in an optimistic mood about the future of opera performance, or at any rate opera performers. Focus is on three young tenors who (spoiler) all end up winning the competition.
“Opera star Paul Potts has given Susan Boyle his backing – and believes she could become as big a star as him.” [via WalesOnline]
Tell us: Filth or dementia?
Hasten thee to feed another quarter of conversation for The Talk of the Town!
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Kathryn the great
Kathryn the great
Parterre Box previews Kathryn Lewek‘s upcoming Salome with clips of her as another unhinged lady of antiquity.
Parterre Box previews Kathryn Lewek‘s upcoming Salome with clips of her as another unhinged lady of antiquity.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Count your blessings
Count your blessings
Fast-rising Verdi baritone Ariunbaatar Ganbataar is the subject of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.
Fast-rising Verdi baritone Ariunbaatar Ganbataar is the subject of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
One man’s Junker
One man’s Junker
Handel’s Deidamia — and one of its current champions, soprano Sophie Junker — are the subject of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.
Handel’s Deidamia — and one of its current champions, soprano Sophie Junker — are the subject of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Don’t cry because it’s over
Don’t cry because it’s over
Grand Tier Grab Bag hearkens back to the days when Sondra Radvanovsky — who is singing no Verdi at all next season — seemed like the Verdi soprano of reference.
Grand Tier Grab Bag hearkens back to the days when Sondra Radvanovsky — who is singing no Verdi at all next season — seemed like the Verdi soprano of reference.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Rizzin’ to the occasion
Rizzin’ to the occasion
Parterre Box features the Met’s current Eugene Onegin, Iurii Samoilov, in a performance of Rossini ahead of a return to Pesaro this summer.
Parterre Box features the Met’s current Eugene Onegin, Iurii Samoilov, in a performance of Rossini ahead of a return to Pesaro this summer.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
When they go low
When they go low
Nostalgic for bass month, Parterre Box offers excerpts from two young basses to watch: Giorgi Manoshvili and Patrick Guetti.
Nostalgic for bass month, Parterre Box offers excerpts from two young basses to watch: Giorgi Manoshvili and Patrick Guetti.
The offbeat 1976 Robert Altman film Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson features divas Evelyn Lear and Noelle Rogers among the love interests of Paul Newman‘s eponymous Wild West showman. The complete movie is now available for viewing on YouTube.
The Met broadcasts Wagner’s Siegfried this afternoon. Discuss. Listen at noon EDT on Sirius or RealNetworks or your favorite internet radio station. Online: the libretto and the vocal score. And check out La Cieca’s Amazon Deal of the Day: the complete 1953 Bayreuth Ring conducted by Clemens Krauss, priced as low as $39.87!
Remember a couple of weeks ago when La Cieca called that NYT story about a potential strike at the New York City Opera “the scariest Friday news dump ever?” Well, she was wrong, wrong, wrong. The winner and new bone-chilling champion of all Friday news dumps just sneaked into the Times online. (Those of you…
To the Met this evening, where Željko LuÄić jumps in as Rigoletto opposite Diana Damrau and Joseph Calleja.
She maintains her gloriosity even in a monosyllabic state!
La Cieca has just heard that Stephen Costello is the 2009 Richard Tucker Award Winner.
[Replaces “Mizrahi eliminated in Project Runway shocker!”]
Nicole Cabell sings Adina at the Met tonight, replacing Angela Gheorghiu. (Those of you keeping score at home will note that of the quartet of singers originally announced for this performance, only Franco Vassallo remains.)
Talk of the Town
The Talk of the Town
Eglise Gutierrez should have made it to the Met
Eglise Gutierrez should have made it to the Met
So much color in this beautifully agile voice.
So much color in this beautifully agile voice.
The Talk of the Town
Mado Robin should have made it to the Met
Mado Robin should have made it to the Met
I like to use this recording to annoy Mariah Carey fans by proving that whistle register doesn’t count.
I like to use this recording to annoy Mariah Carey fans by proving that whistle register doesn’t count.
The Talk of the Town
Maria Kanyova should make it to the Met
Maria Kanyova should make it to the Met
I’m surprised that American soprano Maria Kanyova has never performed at the Met, even though she has loads of high-profile U.S. opera credits.
I’m surprised that American soprano Maria Kanyova has never performed at the Met, even though she has loads of high-profile U.S. opera credits.
The Talk of the Town
Barbara Hannigan should make it to the Met
Barbara Hannigan should make it to the Met
The fact that Barbara Hannigan has never performed at The Metropolitan Opera is just plain dumb.
The fact that Barbara Hannigan has never performed at The Metropolitan Opera is just plain dumb.
The Talk of the Town
Robert Rounseville should have made it to the Met
Robert Rounseville should have made it to the Met
From one Mister Snow to another, I salute him.
From one Mister Snow to another, I salute him.
The Talk of the Town
Denise Duval should have made it to the Met
Denise Duval should have made it to the Met
I decided I’d take ‘never made it to the Met’ as an excuse to submit a post about why French soprano Denise Duval (1921-2015) is special to me.
I decided I’d take ‘never made it to the Met’ as an excuse to submit a post about why French soprano Denise Duval (1921-2015) is special to me.
IMG Artists Chairman Barrett Wissman has pleaded guilty to securities fraud, according to today’s New York Times. Wissman purchased IMG Artists from IMG in 2003 for $7.5 million. IMG Artists’ list of international clients has included Itzhak Perlman, Hilary Hahn, Joshua Bell, Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson, James Galway, KODO, Evgeny Kissin, Lang Lang, Murray Perahia, Antonio…
Pavol Breslik sings an aria from Idomeneo.
Our Own JJ reviews Don GIovanni in the New York Post.
Dolora Zajick will sing the role of Azucena in the Met’s Il Trovatore on April 21, 25, 29, and May 2, replacing Luciana D’Intino who is ill. Mzia Nioradze will sign the final performance on May 8.
The world’s newest cult diva returns! Amira Kamel, first Egyptian ever to sing Aida (it says so on YouTube and so it must be true!) adopts for her “barbaric” drag not only the coiffure, maquillage and plastique of legendary Vera Galupe-Borszkh, but seem to have borrowed one of La Dementia’s caftans as well! [kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/zl51vG-a1F8″…
Why did Mary Dunleavy spend most of her day Saturday at the Met rehearsing and having a costume fitting for L’elsir d’amore? Is Angela Gheorghiu sick? Is Nicole Cabell sick? Is AG about to walk out of a performance or two because of the recent tenor switcheroo? Is NC fired?
[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/4yi5PBCDdjI” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /] “Norma vista dal suggeritore” is one of several brilliant videos on the YouTube channel lucavi58.
New Kid on the Plaza Drammy writes: April 9, 2009. A traditional Otto Schenk production featuring Diana Damrau as Gilda and who cares but.. Frizza conducting, Viktoria Vizin as Maddalena, Calleja as the Duke, Frontali as Rigoletto, Aceto as Sparafucile. Stellar performances from the entire cast, excepting poor Mr Frontali. The set was phenomenal –…
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