La Cieca about to try one of those 21st century activities all the kids are talking about, and no, it’s not chugging Nyquil. Your doyenne is going to use crowdsourcing (that is, put you cher public to work as reporters) to cover the Met’s Opening Night Gala on September 22, 2008 at 6:30 pm. Since […]
“I think that there will be an increased desire in the future to hear great singing again. Certain operas rise and fall on having the requisite vocal chops, and no degree of theatrical energy or physical glamor can replace this.” So says is IMG Artists Vice President and Artist Manager Matthew A. Horner (known affectionately […]
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).
Here’s the solution to the Elfte Brautnacht! vocal ID quiz:
Opera Chic reports this morning that Gerard Mortier is throwing his hat in the, uh, Ring for the co-directorship of the Bayreuth Festival. The Belgian intendant is reportedly teaming up with Nike Wagner to apply for the top Bayreuth spot to be vacated as soon as it can be pried from Wolfgang Wagner‘s cold dead […]
Three-time World’s Best-selling Canadian Female Recording Artist of the Year Céline Dion apparently has not come to her senses in the eight months that have passed since her Las Vegas farewell. As La Cieca warned you last year, the québécoise canary is planning a crossover into the cinema, specifically a biopic in which she, Céline […]
Our previous Regie quiz depicted (as Nerva Nelli so quickly guessed) Verdi’s Aida, in a production by Christopher Alden for the Deutsche Oper Berlin. And now, cher public, our weekly edition of Name that Regie. Remember, if you have seen the production or otherwise recognize the photos, please remain silent while others guess the answer!
“Alex, age 4, clearly in love with what he’s hearing and seeing.” [kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/9uyJ-hrTknA” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]
That bloggeress La Cieca likes to think of as “like a young me,” OperaChic, is currently and brilliantly following up on the controversy sparked by Lorin Maazel‘s grumpy condemnation of those darn newfangled stage directors who won’t get out of his yard. Consarn it. Joining Maazel in tying an onion to his belt is the […]
Several of you cher public have been kind enough to forward to me an email from Peter Gelb offering the Met’s apology for the debacle of the first day of subscriber ticket exchanges. Though La Cieca has sneered a bit at the Buoso Donati contingent, she certainly can understand why loyal subscribers might feel that […]
Here’s a very special audio quiz for La Cieca’s cher public du weekend. In the following mp3 clip, 11 sopranos sing the soaring aria “Zweite Brautnacht!” from Die Ägyptische Helena of Richard Strauss. If you think you can identify these beauties, email [email protected]. The first email received with the names of all 11 sopranos in […]
La Cieca hears that at least one of the ultracool ultraqueer world premieres scheduled for the Met is definitely off the bill.
La Cieca’s dear colleage The Counter Critic is writing a piece for a New York paper about the Met’s HD program. He is looking for “people to interview who have seen the simulcasts, and who have strong opinions about how folks behave during the screenings.” Here’s your chance for your voice to be heard loud […]
The months of speculation in the media are now over: it’s time to name the candidate.
Any singer who is known as “The Croatian Yma Sumac” you know already has won a place in La Cieca’s deepest heart of hearts. So the astonishing production values of the theatrical experience that is known as Priinceza na zrnu graÅ¡ka can only add to your doyenne’s abject veneration for the one, the only… Zdenka […]
Plácido Domingo will sing the role of Maurizio in Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur at the Metropolitan Opera for six performances in February 2009, replacing Marcelo Ãlvarez, who, as we heard before, is jumping into the title role in the Met’s new production of Verdi’s Il Trovatore. As the press release from the Met notes, “With these […]
With the opening night of the Metropolitan Opera’s 2008-2009 season barely a month away, La Cieca is already half-drunk with the sheer glamour of it all. Not only will this first night boast a bouquet of bonbons from Renée Fleming‘s greatest rôles (and, frankly, aren’t they all?), but the musical experience will be enhanced by […]
My dears, you only thought the whingeing about the Met ticket exchange line was over. Now that the shell-shocked and frostbitten survivors of the Gelb Gulag have dragged themselves back to their rent-controlled flats on upper Columbus Avenue, the next stage of the protest against the Met’s barbaric practices can begin. As in every violent […]
Speaking of divas on the cusp of their second half-century of life, Madonna turned 50 this past weekend. That reminds La Cieca of a kinder if not gentler time when MTV was actually pretty cool, as this spoof promo from the era demonstrates. [kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/9IR_3lqBzsc” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]
Many of you guessed the solution already, but here’s the trailer from the most recent Regie quiz, this time with its soundtrack restored.
La Cieca braves tornado warnings (tornado warnings!) to bring her cher public the final Unnatural Acts of Thomas’ Hamlet. Hamlet Acts 4 and 5
It seems to be a day for funny pictures. Here’s barihunk Daniel Belcher as Billy Budd, who he looks like he can’t wait to come aboard the Indomitable! (Cher public, you just know you want to click to enlarge!)
Now, never let it be said that La Cieca was in any way opposed to glamour, and you know very well that is a fervent believer in dear Pablo Picasso‘s maxim that “art is a lie that makes us realize truth.” But, on the other hand, there’s this month’s cover of Opera News.
La Cieca has just learned that veteran soprano and beloved camp diva Katia Ricciarelli is treading the boards again, this time not in opera houses but rather on whatever it is they call the Italian version of the Straw Hat Circuit. The bionda bombshell is currently touring in a play with music by by Peter […]
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