UPDATE, 10:55 pm: The Associated Press confirms that Hildegard Behrens died early Tuesday, according to an email sent to opera officials by Jonathan Friend, artistic administrator of the Metropolitan Opera. La Cieca has just received an as yet unconfirmed report that Hildegard Behrens died earlier today in Japan, where she was preparing for a Lieder…
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Which recent cancellation really has nothing to do with the music, and everything to do with the fact that the stars don’t want to play a couple onstage when offstage they will soon be an ex-pair (in the legal sense)?
“As the East Village gentrifed over the past decade, gone are the punk-rock club, the dive bar, the crack den . . . the opera house.” Our Own JJ marks the finale of Amato Opera. [NYP]
La Cieca is sorry, sorry, sorry about the downtime on parterre.com. The hosting company blames wordpress, and wordpress blames the host, and La Cieca is very rattled right now. If you can hook La Cieca up with someone who knows about PHP and SQL databases, please email her at [email protected] . Thanks, folks.
Resilient soprano Christine Brewer has made a quick recovery from her knee injury, La Cieca hears. The soprano, missed so sorely this season in the Met’s Ring, will return to the stage tomorrow night for a performance of the Verdi Requiem with the Santa Fe Symphony. Ms. Brewer is jumping in (if that is the…
Rolando Villazón “should be well enough to return to the stage by the end of the year” after having surgery “to remove a cyst on his larynx” according to his concert management. Among the engagements Villazón is expected to cancel are Werther in Vienna and Munich, Nemorino in Los Angeles and Paris, and a new…
As you all know by now, Rolando Villazón is out of the rest of the performances of L’elisir at the Met. The Met press office held on to this news until after 7:00 tonight, which is perhaps some indication of just how bad the Met considers this news to be. This is what La Cieca…
La Cieca never knows quite how far to go in repeating what she “is told,” but since some of it seems to be leaking out anyway, well, she’ll try to be tactful. Apparently sometimes opera companies choose to use terminology like “laryngitis” and “knee injury” in order to avoid having to say “exhibited bizarre behavior…
La Cieca really, really doesn’t like to say this, but the truth seems to be staring us in the face, so here goes. We have seen the last of Rolando Villazón at the Met. Even though he’s announced as having canceled only the first two performances of Elisir, it’s pretty clear that he’s just not…
La Cieca is of course delighted to learn that dear John Waters intends to have Pink Flamingos adapted into an opera — though, sadly, he might as well forget about having the work premiered in his home town. La Cieca can’t imagine which currently active composer might be up for the daunting task of setting…
As La Cieca hardly thinks she needs tell you, among the attributes of a prima donna necessary to the success of a performance of Adriana Lecouvreur are morbidezza, il sacro fuoco, voce di petto and of course the ability to wear a turban. And surely you do realize that, sad to say, not everyone can pull off a turban.Â
[Our Own Gualtier Malde (along with a few thousand other people) attended the public dress rehearsal of the Met’s new production of La sonnambula this morning. Here is his report.] Innocence, rustic naiveté and virginity just don’t get no respect no more. I should know, I grew up way out in central New Jersey and…
[La Cieca’s old, old, old friend Camille attended Montserrat Caballe‘s Valentine’s Day duo recital earlier this month. Her reactions — which she admits it took her some days to sort out in her mind — follow.] After some reflection and reviewing Caballe’s Orange Festival Norma, once again, I can merely pipe up with my opinion…
Sharp-eyed reader Sadie Salome writes: It seems I was the only one spent much of last night’s letter scene peering through her binoculars at Karita Mattila‘s fine acting, because I see no report on your site of last night’s mishap (and if it isn’t on your site, then it obviously hasn’t been reported anywhere!) As you…
Following in the footsteps of Harrison Birtwistle‘s Minotaur and Thomas Adès’ The Tempest (which featured the half-human character Caliban), the Royal Opera House has commissioned yet another opera based upon a legendary monster. The as-yet-untitled oeuvre is the life story of Anna Nicole Smith, with music by Mark-Anthony Turnage (The Silver Tassie) and libretto by…
The operatives were busy over the midnight hours: “Act 3 was a mixed bag. The opening showed Villazon in much better form, with solid phrasing. The Mad Scene started out beautiful, Netrebko spinning out haunting legato. She was completely involved and engaged. Then she fell apart at the flute solo, sounding under supported and wavering…
La Cieca has just heard that Opera Orchestra of New York will cancel the remainder of their 2009 season, which was to have consisted of Rienzi on March 19 and Medea on April 21.
Vivian Della Chiesa, “Toscanini’s favorite soprano,” died on Tuesday. She was 94. Della Chiesa is heard in the Trio from I Lombardi with Jan Peerce and Nicola Moscona, conducted by Arturo Toscanini, in a radio concert from January 31, 1943. “Qui posa il fianco… Qual volutta trascorrere”
The people have spoken, and so from henceforth George Steel will be known by his, whatchamacallit, you know, his sobriquet, which (per your decree) is “The Man of Steel.” La Cieca thought she should review at least a couple of the biggest challenges facing The Man of Steel as he and the NYCO begin a restoration project…
Our Own Gualtier Maldè reports: The Met’s orchestra and audience have found a new conductor to love: Daniel Barenboim.  The debutante conductor got a huge ovation before he even lifted his baton. Lots of applause for Danny B. all night from an adoring audience including a generous amount at his final bow. There was lots of touchy feely…
Screenshot of the “Pressroom” page at the New York City Opera’s website, taken at 2:50 pm on November 11, November 10, 2008. Note the date of the most recent item. And this from the “About” page, same site, captured at 8:30 am, November 11:
Sadly, La Cieca, who foresaw the beginning, foresaw the end as well.
Opera Pacific has canceled the remainder of their season and “will likely close down operations for good.” [via OC Register]
A new spy debuts in La Cieca’s service, reporting from the first night of WNO’s Lucrezia Borgia: Overall, I thought the opera was worth the price of attendance. The costumes of the main characters looked like something from Star Trek. Renée Fleming‘s hair looked like Tina Turner circa 1984. Fleming was impressive, especially in many…
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