Hell’s kitchen
Teatro Nuovo pays tribute to a historic New York production of Don Giovanni with a talented ensemble.
Lorenzo Da Ponte
37 pieces since 2009.
37
pieces
18
years
Extravagant minimalism
Ahead of his new production of Die Frau ohne Schatten, Barrie Kosky chats with Kevin Ng in Aix about pretty much everything — except the details of his new Frau.
Così così
Despite some fine performances, Così fan tutte at the Livermore Valley Opera doesn’t quite click into place.
One is silver, the other is Golda
In an all-Mozart program with the San Francisco Symphony, Golda Schultz shows that her soubrette days are behind her.
I’m getting married in the morning
Washington National Opera presented a well-sung and humorous Marriage of Figaro, buoyed by clever direction and a strong cast, particularly Rosa Feola’s Countess and Joélle Harvey’s Susanna.
Marriage is what brings us together today
Le nozze di Figaro in Santa Fe is a light and kindly revival while The Turn of the Screw is crisp and atmospheric
Le nozze di Picasso
Wolf Trap Opera kicked off its summer season with an inventive production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro inspired by Pablo Picasso that showcased up-and-coming singers.
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
The Women are like that
A stylish and funny Così fan tutte at LA Opera is a pretty glam affair, according to Patrick Mack.
Sisters are doing it for themselves
War! Heroism! Mysterious strangers! Attempted suicide! Steadfast love! Così fan tutte, as staged November 18-21 at Juilliard Opera, had… none of these things.
La folle journée d’Antoine
But pressing questions remains: Why? Who is this Figaro for?
A delicate balance
For anyone who thought that Downton Abbey, with its plot lines divided between the gentry and their faithful (or not-so) servants was somehow unique, that particular tale, and lo its many variations, has been told in one form or another since Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais put quill to paper in 1778 with La Folle Journée, ou Le Mariage de Figaro.
A touch of class
For the season opener, Opera San José decided to explore the class conflict central to Le nozze di Figaro by transporting the opera to India, specifically during the British Raj.
Those monsters look like us
“This used to be a funhouse… but now it’s full of evil clowns / It’s time to start the countdown…. I’m gonna burn it down”
‘Così,’ cheap ‘n cheerful
In 2022, making Così fan tutte intimate is not a radical act. Making it enjoyable, however, is.
“Le Mozart noir”
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint George is frequently referred to as “le Mozart noir.” While surely intended as a favorable comparison to Mozart, the sobriquet is diminishing, implying that Bologne’s music was somehow derivative of Mozart’s.
Let your love flow
Saturday afternoon’s performance of Le Nozze di Figaro at the Met was awash with contradictions.
Is that how they do it?
Così fan tutte presents a considerable challenge to the modern director.
Take care of this house
How does one make a performance of standard opera repertoire like Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro feel “fresh?”
Behind closed doors
Mozart appears to find promiscuity a source of humor rather than something that is a fundamental problem.
“The richest food that money can buy”
All about the life of Lorenzo Da Ponte, but depicted as an opera performed as a dress rehearsal for an opera.
Strangers in the night
One needs liberty in order to be a libertine.
That’s how they’ve done it
Così fan tutte, Mozart’s final Italian comedy with Lorenzo Da Ponte, is this season’s heaviest lift for Philadelphia’s Academy of Vocal Arts (AVA).
Cipher space
Salieri’s La Cifra (“The Cipher”) played all over Europe for 20 years, in several translations (German, Spanish). Then, like many a worthy work, it was forgotten.