Met's 2009-2010 Subscription Highlights and Lowlights

Dear Metropolitan Opera,

I would like to first introduce some proposed improvements to your recent presentation of subscriptions...Lowlights!

• Will someone PLEASE make sure that Rolando Villazon gets his life in order before we all get our hopes up about Contes d'Hoffmann????? From recent reports via Parterre and Opera Chic should we get the hint that maybe Rolando isn't going to be appearing at the Met if not after an extended absence, then ever? This whole situation makes me rather depressed.
• Someone just remind me why we are replacing the Zefferelli Tosca? No, no I shouldn't think like this. I'll be open minded: Will someone reassure me that the new production will be fantastic??
• Why, for goodness sake, can't the Met fit in a Der Rosenkavalier into any of the Saturday Evening subscriptions? That is one of the few operas that I am absolutely dying to go see and I can't squeeze it in to any of my subscription choices! I will have to buy tickets separately, but can't the Met replace anything with Rosenkavalier?
• Another little detail they forgot about in the Saturday subscriptions: The Nose. This is another opera I want to see so badly (just for Paulo Szot, but shhhh don't tell anyone!) and it's nowhere to be found on Saturday Evening!
• I just have this to say about Renee's new production of Armida: Can we trust Mary Zimmerman with another bel canto opera?

Alright, that's all the complaints I have. On a lighter note, here are some events I'm looking forward to this season...Highlights!!!

• I'm very curious about From the House of the Dead. I have a very funny feeling about it, but a good funny feeling. Something is going to make this opera interesting. I'm intrigued!
• The new Carmen! I'm usually very conservative when it comes to new productions, especially when they're for such staples as Carmen, but this is another case where I have a good feeling about it. I'm hoping that even if the production turns out eurotrashy or just flat out obnoxious (ie. the recent Sonnambula) the stellar cast will keep it afloat.
• As I said in the Lowlights, I'm looking forward to the Der Rosenkavalier and The Nose, but for very different reasons. The primary reason in The Nose is, of course, Paulo Szot, but I'm trying to branch out into more contemporary opera to see if I like it. Trying to stay hip and "with it." =) Der Rosenkavalier, on the other hand is a shameless guilty pleasure. Not only does it star my dear Renee Fleming, but oh look! there's Susan Graham and Thomas Allen! Did I mention that this is one of my favorite operas of all time?
• Maybe this season I'll finally get to see Damnation de Faust or Il Trittico. I wanted to see Damnation this year, but never got around to it. It looked like a strange production!!!! Il Trittico is in support of my darling Patricia Racette. She's got the triple bill going and I wouldn't miss it for the world!!!!!

This is sure to be a season of opportunity. There are so many new operas and genres to try, new productions to explore, and new singers to fall head-over-heels for (namely Paulo Szot). Even if we hate (or love to hate?) every single new production, or if we bash every singer in a revival, we KNOW that this season will NOT be boring. The blogosphere and Angela Gheorghiu will make sure that we will always have something to talk about during the 2009-2010 season!!!

Happy Listening!!! =)

PS. *sighhhhh* I missed posting! =)

Was it Utterly Shamless Diva Worship? Yessss. Do I Regret a Minute of it? Noooo.

Thais
by Jules Massenet
December 27th, 2008

Conducted by Jesus Lopez-Cobos
Thais- Renee Fleming
Athanael- Thomas Hampson
Nicias- Michael Schade
Palemon- Alain Vernhes
Albine- Maria Zifchak
Crobyle/Myrtale- Alyson Cambridge/Ginger Costa-Jackson
Violin Solo- David Chan


I think the whole point of putting on a production like Thais is so that the audience can bask in the glory of a diva and worship her 'til night is done. In fact, I know that the only point of showing a rarely seen diva-mobile is to show off an opera house's most venerated soprano.

Renee Fleming herself seemed to rise to the occasion and delivered a beautiful and rich interpretation of this saintly courtesan. My one fear of the evening was that she wouldn't make the high note at the end of "Je suis seul", but how foolish of me! She of course sang the note perfectly, along with the rest of the gorgeous aria. While she might need some more lessons in "seductive dancing", as it were, Renee needs no help in playing the part of the ultimate diva, because isn't she the ultimate diva herself? She looked glorious in the two Christian Lacroix gowns, especially the first with the huge pink poofy jacket that I want to own and wear on the weekends. =) My English teacher always says that an author can not expect his/her audience to believe that a character’s personality can drastically change unless there are hints throughout the work. I had that in my mind while watching Thais, looking for hints. The biggest hint of course comes from the opera itself in Act II when Thais explains that she is looking for more in life and her fear of what will happen when she grows old. Massenet leaves the rest to the soprano. Renee here again rose to the occasion. Hint #1: Thais meaningless declarations of love to Nicias. Hint #2: The way she reacts when Athanael comes into her room and promises her eternal life. Hint #3: Her desire for eternal life. Hint #4: Her reaction when she hears Nicias’s voice (she says she hates Nicias.) Hint #5: Her willingness to burn everything she owns, even if she wants to keep a small ivory statue, she’s only human. We can forgive Renee the last note she sang, which was…not lovely… because the rest of the performance was truly magical.

While this opera is a diva-mobile it struck me how much focus there is on Anthanael. That’s not a problem of course, because I found the character intriguing thanks to the brilliance that is Thomas Hampson. The opera could be called Athanael, because I feel that the focus is (or should be) not just on Thais’s conversion, but on Atahanael’s struggle and decent into obsession. Thais is almost a cameo role, while Athanael has a back-story and a struggle and a journey that shapes the plot. Thomas Hampson was miraculous as this tortured monk. He, if you can believe, almost (almost) completely stole the spotlight from Thais/Renee. He almost overshadowed her in their scenes together, but I suppose that that is the intention of the opera, for Athanael to overpower Thais. Either way, he sounded fantastic. To my ears he sounded thousand times better than he did at Renee’s Big Opening Night. Athanael suits his voice much better than Germont. His “conversion” was more believable than Thais’s, in that he becomes obsessed with her memory and when he finds her dying he yells “It was all lies! There is no heaven! Everything I have told you is wrong! Stay with me!” While extremely disturbing, these lines do provide a small amount of comic relief.

Michael Schade has never been on my list of favorite tenors. Don’t ask me why, because he was a wonderful voice, but something about him just doesn’t click with me. However, his portrayal of Nicias was great. Despite his Mafioso style costumes (which are not his fault) I enjoyed his performance as the thoroughly creepy, but idolizing Nicias. His duet with Thais was beautifully sung, and I wouldn’t mind hearing him again.

All the supporting roles were very commendable. Alain Vernhes as Palemon, the head monk, was beautifully sung as was Maria Zifchak as Albine. Alyson Cambridge and Ginger Costa-Jackson as Nicias’s lackey’s Crobyle and Myrtale were extraordinary. One is a graduate of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program and the other a member, if these are the singers this program is churning out then I am an avid supporter!
The “Meditation” was simply glorious and although it was at times rudely interrupted by noisy set changes backstage, it was mesmerizing as played by David Chan. I found myself not looking at the orchestra but gazing around the opera house thinking “Is there a more perfect place to play such a perfect piece?” I just worship the Met and the “Meditation.”


DEAR MET AUDIENCE,
IN THE WORDS OF A FAMOUS TENOR “SHUT UP WITH YOUR DAMN COUGHING.” For goodness sake, people. During intermission hack up your lungs for all I care, sneeze until your brains come out, but when the lights go down I want SILENCE! It wasn’t just an occasional sporadic cough or sneeze, but every time someone coughed it would send a chain reaction of “Okay, then I can cough/sneeze now too.” Sometime’s it would go on for minutes until I wanted to scream! Seriously, opera fans, it’s not that hard to cough at intermission, or to keep quiet for the short amount of time the singers were on stage!
Love always,
CaroNome of Score Desk

Quick note on the production itself: It reminded me of the Otto Schenk Ring. The desert set looked very difficult to navigate, I was always worried Thomas Hampson was going to fall!!!! Overall, I did enjoy it. Nicias’s palace was my favorite set.


Next Post: The New Met Opera Store!!!!!!!!!!


Happy Listening!!!! =)

Divas Take Over New York, Bloomberg Jealous (Part II)

Welcome to part two!!!! This was probably the worst week to have opening night (for me anyway) because all of a sudden I have all this school work and no time to do it! In the midst of all this I want to write this review and be done with it!!!!
Reminder: This part is about the actual performance.


RENEE FLEMING:
I noticed that since she did not have all of act one to warm up, she sounded a bit rough for the first few minutes of Traviata. By the time she was up to "Dite alla govine" and certainly by the aaamaaazing "Ah m'ami Alfredo" she was in tip top shape. Sopranos are noted for always wanting to dddrrraaagggg those bars out, but why not? Beautiful voice, beautiful music, impassioned situation. Who's complaining?!?! In Scene Two the "Alfredo, Alfredo" was, as she always does it, long and drawn out. If she has the breath capacity then I say go for it! It sounded stunning and she sang it sitting on the ground! That can't be easy.
Now, while Renee isn't exactly a coloratura expert, I think she handled Manon very very very nicely. She approached the bravura a little differently than most sopranos, to be sure, but I think it sounded fine. Okay, okay, yes I do prefer Beverly Sills, but Sills was the queen of Manons, so I have to give everyone else a break. The St. Sulpice scene was, in my opinion, a better scene for Renee. The "N'est ce plus ma main" was gorgeous and was sung with such feeling! The "pole dancing" on the prie dieu was not my favorite moment of the evening, but it added a bit of controversy (and adamant muttering in the movie theaters).
Capriccio was the real highlight of the evening. I feel bad for those who did not stay through to the end due to the lateness of the evening. This was my favorite and probably the best of the three acts for Ms. Fleming. This is said to be one of her favorite scenes in all of opera, and there's a reason for it. The metaphorical significance is obvious, and the music is enchanting. The soprano has a choice to move around and really use the stage or to stand in one place and sing to her "reflection." (Which I think is another metaphor. The soprano looks for herself in the audience. The reflection of herself comes from the audience, the spectators. Ah ha!) Renee chose the former course of action. She really moved around the stage and used the set. It wasn't exactly a chew-and-swallow kind of using the set, but she got around. Some awkward motions at the end almost (ALMOST) ruined it a tiny bit. However, her singing more than made up for it and the little laugh she gave at the end. Woof. It makes you want to know who she picked SO BADLY.
I have one more thing to say about Renee and the whole experience: BEAST.

Ramon Vargas:
The secondary, but very front and center (oxymoron?), star of the evening was Ramon Vargas. After a very beautiful, but cut, Alfredo in Traviata Ramon banged out a beautiful performance of Des Grieux in Manon. "O mio rimorso" is one of my favorite parts of Traviata and although I had this feeling that they were going to cut it I was still sad that they did. *Sigh* What we do for Renee.... Anyway, as usual Ramon Vargas knocked his roles out of the ball park. The Des Grieux (by the way, this was his first time singing it on stage!) was absolutely perfect! I loved the "Ah, fuyez!" even though he was gasped for breath during the applause. Everything was spot on. I'm always so happy when he comes on the stage. He has such an uplifting presence.

Thomas Hampson:
I never realized how well Thomas Hampson could play an old man. Now, while he would probably say "It's not really acting" or "Well, it's not that much of a stretch" (or other such jokes on himself) we also have to give him some real credit for looking so completely arthritis ridden during the Traviata. I bet that was hard. Shoulders all the way up, stiff movements, and he even shook his hands sometimes while he was singing to make himself look older. That takes some serious talent, and my gosh Thomas Hampson has enough talent to feed an army. His arias sounded great and his voice was, from what I know of his voice, in excellent shape. I also just loved the way he stood over Violetta at the very end of Act II like "Oh my gosh, I'm really sorry about what just happened, but don't expect me to give my son back!" and the way she looked at him. Ah! What a great moment! I know I've beat this into the ground, but I want to say it again: For a very good looking man he sure does play a mean old guy!

Robert Lloyd:
Well, Robert Lloyd. Older timer Robert Lloyd. What is there to say? Magnificent as always. I love the sound of his voice and the deep sonorous tones he produces. His acting is spot on, too. When he begins to mock clap for his "son" Des Grieux (not a realistic match visually...) you just sit there like "Ouch. That one's gotta hurt." He embodies the character perfectly. For the short period he was on stage he really stood out for me. Bravo!



All the conductors (James Levine, Marco Armiliato, Patrick Summers) were fabulous. One thing about Patrick Summers. I think he did the best job out of all of them, though I do adore James Levine. He conducted Capriccio so beautifully and so perfectly. It was wonderful.
The chorus is sounded so fantastic these days! I can hardly believe it! It seems like just a season ago I was complaining about the chorus women! Now look, I can't stop raving about them!
Orchestra. Nothing to say. Perfection. (Look perfection up in the dictionary. It says "per-fec-tion. noun. see Metropolitan Opera Orchestra")



I have one closing question for the world....
WILL EMI RELEASE THIS ON DVD?
I sincerely hope so. This is a historic opening night. Get on that one, Gelb. =)




Happy Listening!!!! =)
Happy 2008-2009 Season!!!!! =)

Divas Take Over New York, Bloomberg Jealous (Part I?)

I think I may do this in two parts, one for the performance and one for the extra fluff. (Not that we don't love fluff) This first part is for, as Jane Austen puts it, the "all important nothings."

Quick little blip: We didn't have subtitles until "Pura siccome" which was slightly annoying, although I'm sure everyone in the movie theater knew at least the gist of what was happening. Also, for the first few seconds of Susan Graham's opening statement my theater didn't have sound. I was so worried that I accidentally let a little swear word pass my lips, followed by an ardent "Sorry!" We got sound after a few seconds and had no audio problems (or subtitle problems!) after that.

(I've heard that other theaters had the same problems, so it must have been the Met or the satellite, not the theater.)

Susan Graham was so adorable as the hostess! I think she did a wonderful job considering she problem didn't have much rehearsal or prep. I thought she looked stunning, but personally I think she's better as a brunette.

All the interviews went wonderfully. Christine Baranski and her daughter were funny and Nico Muhly was very articulate and cute! I'm looking forward to his new opera which is coming out "in the next million years" even though online stalking is not exactly my favorite topic. =) I always feel so artistic and intelligent when I see someone like Francesco Clementi speak. He's so informative and I feel like he knows so much. His portraits are so beautiful and I can't wait to get to the Met to see them. Diana Damrau looked beautiful, as usual. She's such a cutie and I can't wait to see her in Lucia, which she was very reluctant to talk about. Obviously she's very nervous???

I liked the montages of Renee Fleming's life story and the opening night designer costumes. The interview with the costume and wig designers had some fun little trivia in there, like all of the REAL jewels in Renee's jewelry for the evening. You heard some whispers as you saw in the background shoe boxes that said things like "Great Gastby, Upshaw" "Frittoli, Fiordiligi."

Deborah Voigt, looking very slim and healthy, really enjoyed her time in Times Square! I had to laugh at the faces she made at Paulo Szot (although he did deserve those fluttering eye-lashes). She's such a ham! Those few lines from "Some Enchanted Evening" were amazing, by the way. He got me! =) Debbie got some other cute interviews with the opera-goers, some of them unsuspecting spectators.

Intermissions:

I'm a tad miffed that in no way shape or form can Martha Stewart's "Grande Dame" cocktail be made "virgin." What like some underage kiddies don't want to drink an operatic cocktail? How about a Diva Daiquiri? That's easy to take the alcohol out of!

I find it amusing that Susan Graham suggested Mister Mayor Michael Bloomberg appear in an opera at the Met! He even said "I can't sing a note!" However, Susan's right he wouldn't have to say a word. That would be a funny cameo!

The guy who took Joe Clark's job (gosh I can't recall the job title or the new guy's name!) seems extremely competent. Everything ran smoothly and I wish him luck in this extremely difficult job!

THE GOWNS:

Hated the first Traviata gown. Renee can wear a dress, let me tell you, but this wouldn't look good on Grace Kelly. It's like they ripped apart an ugly sofa and made a dress out of it. The dress for scene II was SO MUCH BETTER. I thought it was beautiful. That red was gorgeous and I love the acres and acres of fabric!

I was not happy to notice that someone tampered with the Manon dress, aka attacked it with a Bedazzler. What was with the rhinestones? It looked almost like a copy of the dress in Vogue (seen above). Having said that, I did adore the cape for the St. Sulpice scene. I want it, I want to own it, I want to wear it. I love capes like that, I love them!!!!! The glorious Capriccio gown was my favorite. It was many people's favorite as well, from what I hear. That coat really made the dress, even though one lone feather stuck to La Fleming's back and irked me considerably. I almost (ALMOST) wanted Renee to wear the feather in her hair like in the above photo, but the at first horrifying bob wig grew on me and by the end of the act I didn't mind it very much. The only gowns that actually lived up to the Vogue hype were the Act II Scene II Traviata and the Capriccio. I would give A LOT to be able to wear those gowns just for a few minutes.

More on the actually singing later...

Happy Listening!!! =)

HAPPY 2008-2009 SEASON!!!!!!!!!!

When In The Course Of Operatic Events it Becomes Necessary for One People to Dissolve the Bands That Disconnect Them From OPENING NIGHT!!!!!

Give In To Temptation...

Let Yourself Go...

Are You Ready?

Ja vas lyublyu: A Tribute to Tchaikovsky on His Birthday

Ja vas lyublyu!
Thank you, Tchaikovsky, for teaching me how to say "I love you" in Russian. It comes in handy when I'm trying to impress people with my linguistic skills. =)

But, more than that, Tchaikovsky has shaped most of my appreciation for music. Since "The Nutcracker" takes up more than half of my time during the months of September, October, November, and December, it's safe to say that Tchaikovsky's music is one of the most important in my life. As a ballet student I've seen (and heard) "Swan Lake" countless times. Not that that's a problem at all, my gosh of course not! My favorite (to dance)... the four little swans.

Let's not forget his amazing operas!!!!
My gateway into the Russian opera world: Eugene Onegin. One of my favorite bookhttp://youtube.com/watch?v=ZhQr7w055-Ys, containing one of my favorite heroines is also an opera (not like you didn't know!) that takes everything to the dramatic extreme! Oh, how glorious.
I will not fail to mention his other operas, Iolanta and The Queen of Spades. Let's linger on The Queen of Spades (Pique Dame) for a moment. That baritone aria, OH THAT BARITONE ARIA. It's like heaven wrapped in chocolate...especially when Mr. Hvorostovsky is singing it!


Oh, that Tchaikovsky. Never fails to amaze.


Happy Listening!!!! =)

(Official) HD List in Met Press Release

It's even more exciting than we thought! Considering the fact that my local movie theater (which is within easy walking distance) has adopted the Met in HD, I am happy to announce that there will not be just 10 HD transmissions like Renee said during La Boheme, but there will be ELEVEN.
I'll save the best for last and give you these 10 first (straight from the Met website)...

Saturday, October 11, 2008 SALOME (1:00 p.m. EDT / 12:00 p.m. CDT / 11:00 a.m. MDT / 10:00 a.m. PDT/ 17:00 p.m. UTC / 18:00 p.m. BST / 19:00 CEST) – Soprano Karita Mattila reprises her acclaimed interpretation of the title character of Strauss’s Salome, with baritone Juha Uusitalo as Jochanaan. Mikko Franck conducts.

Saturday, November 8, 2008 DOCTOR ATOMIC (1:00 p.m. EST / 12:00 p.m. CST / 11:00 a.m. MST / 10:00 a.m. PST/ 18:00 p.m. UTC / 19:00 p.m. CET) – Penny Woolcock directs the Metropolitan Opera premiere of John Adams’s Doctor Atomic, starring Gerald Finley as Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer and Sasha Cooke as his wife, Kitty, with Eric Owens and Richard Paul Fink. Alan Gilbert conducts. NEW PRODUCTION

Saturday, November 22, 2008 LA DAMNATION DE FAUST (1:00 p.m. EST / 12:00 p.m. CST / 11:00 a.m. MST / 10:00 a.m. PST/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) – Robert Lepage directs Berlioz’s La Damnation de Faust, starring Marcello Giordani in the title role, with Susan Graham as Marguerite and John Relyea as Méphistophélès. James Levine conducts. (A new production reconceived in collaboration with Ex Machina for the Met, based on a co-production of the Saito Kinen Festival and Opéra National de Paris.) NEW PRODUCTION

Saturday, December 20, 2008 THAÏS (12:00 p.m. EST / 11:00 a.m. CST / 10:00 a.m. MST / 9:00 a.m. PST/ 17:00 p.m. UTC; 18:00 p.m. CET) – Renée Fleming stars in the title role of Massenet’s Thaïs, with Thomas Hampson as the monk Athanaël in John Cox’s production, which originated at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Jesús López-Cobos conducts. NEW PRODUCTION

Saturday, January 10, 2009 LA RONDINE (1:00 p.m. EST / 12:00 p.m. CST / 11:00 a.m. MST / 10:00 a.m. PST/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) – Nicolas Joël directs Puccini’s La Rondine, starring Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna in a production originally mounted by the Théâtre du Capitole, Toulouse, and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Marco Armiliato conducts. (Co-production with the Théâtre du Capitole, Toulouse, and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.) NEW PRODUCTION

Saturday, January 24, 2009 ORFEO ED EURIDICE (1:00 p.m. EST / 12:00 p.m. CST / 11:00 a.m. MST / 10:00 a.m. PST/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) – Stephanie Blythe and Danielle de Niese star in Mark Morris’s production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice. James Levine conducts.

Saturday, February 7, 2009 LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR (1:00 p.m. EST / 12:00 p.m. CST / 11:00 a.m. MST / 10:00 a.m. PST/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) – Dynamic opera duo Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazón star in Mary Zimmerman’s acclaimed production of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor. Marco Armiliato conducts.

Saturday, March 7, 2009 MADAMA BUTTERFLY (1:00 p.m. EST / 12:00 p.m. CST / 11:00 a.m. MST / 10:00 a.m. PST/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) – Cristina Gallardo-Domâs sings the title role of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in Anthony Minghella’s stunning production. Marcello Giordani stars as Pinkerton. Patrick Summers conducts.

Saturday, March 21, 2009 LA SONNAMBULA (1:00 p.m. EDT / 12:00 p.m. CDT / 11:00 a.m. MDT / 10:00 a.m. PDT/ 17:00 p.m. UTC; 18:00 p.m. CET) – Natalie Dessay and Juan Diego Flórez star in Mary Zimmerman’s new production of Bellini’s La Sonnambula, conducted by Evelino Pidò. NEW PRODUCTION

Saturday, May 9, 2009 LA CENERENTOLA (1:00 p.m. EDT / 12:00 p.m. CDT / 11:00 a.m. MDT / 10:00 a.m. PDT/ 17:00 p.m. UTC; 18:00 BST; 19:00 p.m. CEST) – Elīna Garanča stars in Rossini’s bel canto Cinderella story, La Cenerentola. Lawrence Brownlee stars as her Prince Charming, Don Ramiro. Maurizio Benini conducts.


AND MOST EXCITING OF ALL... IN NORTH AMERICA ONLY (sorry)...

Monday, September 22, 2008 OPENING NIGHT GALA (6:30 p.m. EDT / 5:30 p.m. CDT / tape delayed to 8:00 p.m. MDT / 7:00 p.m. PDT) – Opening Night Gala starring Renée Fleming in fully staged performances of scenes from three different operas: Verdi’s La Traviata (Act II), Massenet’s Manon (Act III), and the final scene from Richard Strauss’s Capriccio. Tenor Ramón Vargas and baritones Thomas Hampson and Dwayne Croft co-star. Met Music Director James Levine and Marco Armiliato conduct.

Woooooooooaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh... So just in case I can't get tickets to the actual opening night, I can either sit in the plaza/Times Square in the cold and watch it or I can sit in a nice warm movie theater. There is always the possibility that La Fleming will take a bow on the Grand Tier balcony a la Dessay this season, but we might have to take that chance.


Did I mention lately that Peter Gelb is my hero?

Happy Listening!!! =)

"La Boheme Makes Me Wish I Had Consumption"

I would like to start this review by profusely thanking Peter Gelb for all that he has done. I've done this before and I'll do it again. Peter Gelb is a genius. His HD broadcasts bring the Met all over the world to all sorts of people that would never think to enter an opera house. I bow down to you, Mr. Gelb.

Now that I'm done groveling let me tell you about the opera.

It was perfection. After such an ending I can hardly give anyone a bad review. I was in tears a full twenty minutes before Mimi died and during "Donda lieta usci." Angela Gheorghiu, who you know is not by any means my favorite soprano, was so wonderful. Whenever I see a singer I don't particularly care for they always win me over! I'm a sucker for wonderful performers. Ms. Gheorghiu's voice is so lovely and what an actress! She might take a long time to get to the stage door because she has to pick the scenery from her teeth first. One thing that irked me was that when she sings she moves around so much. She mouth goes all over and, at least from what I saw, her body is constantly moving. Ramon Vargas was a very effecting Rodolfo. I saw him first last season in Onegin and he was better in this I think. He has more to do here and more to sing. At first he was a either a little tentative or not fully warmed up. By the end of "Che Gelida Manina" he was beautiful. His high notes were fabulous. During the third and fourth act he was so heartbreaking, you really felt for Rodolfo.

Out of what opera adoring universe did Ludovic Tezier spring from? I had never heard of him before today, but my gosh what a voice! The first time he opened his mouth I had to gasp and thought "Who is that??" Some people were not so thrilled by him, but I was! He was rather handsome, but even with my eyes closed (which they never were, by the way) I could hear that his voice was rich and beautiful. Oren Gradus and Quinn Kelsey were agile (to say the least) and hysterically funny as Colline and Schaunard. The "Vecchia Zimarra" by Mr. Gradus was beautiful and sentimental. Schaunard is usually a character who is forgotten or just floats into the background. Not this Schaunard, he was front and center with his humor and charm. Ainhoa Arteta, who I saw in this role last season, was funny, flirty, and had a marvelous voice. Her "Quando M'en Vo" definitely stood out, and her acting quite overshadowed Ms. Gheorghiu in the second act. It was great because at the end she really cried when Mimi died. After the curtain came down we (that is, the people in the movie theaters) saw her continually wipe her eyes and her cheeks. Fantastic! Paul Plishka, of course, was a comic force for this opera. His Benoit/Alcindoro combination were so funny. It's so great to still have him around and just hanging around the house. Nicola Luisotti conducted fabulously. I've heard people complaining that he took it too slow. It's interesting, because in the theaters no one complained about it, but everyone who heard it on the radio said it was slow! Interesting...

As usual, there's nothing to be said about the chorus and orchestra that hasn't been said already. Remarkable. Truly spectacular.

Renee Fleming hosted today and what a cute job she did! We saw the obvious question cards for the interviews, which caused a few chuckles, but that's not a huge problem. She interviewed the head of the Children's Chorus and the children themselves, Angela and Ramon, Joe Clark (now a regular for interviews), and Nicola Luisotti. There was a tribute to Franco Zefferelli (who I didn't mention before because I don't need to say anything about the production) that had clips from all of his productions from the Met including Tosca, Otello, Cavalleria/Pagliacci, Turandot, and others. Another montage, if you will, featured a clip or two from every HD broadcast both last season and this season. There was a trailer for the upcoming Fille broadcast with footage from the Covent Garden production.

The backstage camera angles were so incredible. During the pause between Act I and Act II you saw the Parisian rooftops slide off the stage and the Latin Quarter (with the whole chorus already on board) moved slowly and quietly from stage right. The whole set moved onto the stage. It was insane. I couldn't get enough of it.

Renee also mentioned that next season there will be ten HD broadcasts to theaters everywhere. Guess who's excited!!!! =)

Happy Listening!! =)

Otello 3/1/2008: Curtain Call Photos

I'm not sure why they're so blurry. It's either the lack of flash or my hand shaking like a leaf. I had to stop my natural instinct which was to clap like a crazy person. So I compensated for screaming (a little too loudly) brava after brava. Fond memories...

Happy Listening!! =)

This Weekend's Excitements

Well, yesterday there was the NYCO's Madama Butterfly Live from Lincoln Center on PBS. I came in at the end of Act I and found the two stars in wonderful voice. James Valenti not only possessing a beautiful tenor voice, he also possesses a lovely tenor physique!!!! No exaggeration needed. Shu-Ying Li as Cio-cio San looked and sounded graceful and wonderful. Susan Graham was the host. I was slightly surprised as I was expecting Renee Fleming, opera's new Katie Couric and the Met's poster girl. Susan Graham looked like she stole Ms. Fleming's wardrobe stylist and her hair. Fleming let Susan borrow her hair since she sorta likes the new corn-row Shakira style hair from the Met's Thais.

Speaking of Renee Fleming...
"I'm a Pilates nut. I found that it's really changed my body. After two children you think you will never in your life have a flat stomach again, and I'm here to tell you that Pilates can do it."
was among other fascinating comment's regarding geography, courtesans, and being booed at La Scala.


This weekend, to my disappointment (although I wish him will), Juan Diego Florez is in Peru for his wedding. =( =( Around this time last year Mr. Florez and Julia Trappe were married in a "private and secretive ceremony" in Vienna. Now they are both in Peru for a- I am guessing- religious ceremony. All I have to say is: Ms. Trappe, you're lucky you got to him first.


Unless you're not too tired from this Saturday's Tristan and Isolde HD transmission I recommend these two wonderful television programs that air this Sunday. Two of the John Adams episodes have already aired, but tune in anyway, it's such a great show!!! Let it be known that since watching the movie "1776" at age ohhhh I would say 8 or 9, I have been enthralled by this point in American history and by the story of John Adams. Also, since the age of 8 or 9 I've also been enchanted by all things Jane Austen.
Well-rounded? Yes, you could say that.


Happy Listening!! =)

08-09 MET SNEAK PEEK!

Besides the BEASTLY looking Renee Fleming there are other amazing pictures of next years new production at the Met! Renee with cornrows (shown above), Natalie Dessay walking off a diving board, Marcello Giordani as the black rider, and other pictures give us a look at next years treats!

I hereby establish BEASTLY as a compliment. It was made thus for Renee Fleming, but can be used in other circumstances. synonyms: amazing, beyond amazing, crazy good, all around fantastic, out of this world...etc.

Happy Listening!!! =)

March 1st: A Play-by-Play

Since you can't buy 3 Standing Room tickets at once one of the places was far away from the other two. None of us wanted to be by ourselves, so we squeezed into two places. That was uncomfortable. Plus, we had 3 very tall people in front of us. Still, I moved all around to see everything that happened on stage.
The minute Renee walked on I started shaking. Just shaking, nothing else. My friends grabbed my hands and said, "Oh my god, it's really really her!" They were just as amazed. Of course, the second she started singing I was almost on the floor in tears. I'm pretty over dramatic. Still... I mean think about when you first saw your favorite singer ever in the whole world. Wasn't it pretty intense? We had some classic Renee moments in there, where you just go "of that's SO Renee! The "quella parole orrEEEEENDA" for instance. There's one where i fell onto the floor (figuratively, of course). The "Ah, Emilia addio!" after the "buona notte" as another one. Her final goodbye to her friend was so touching and that note was, oh, flawless. Her acting really led the opera, if it wasn't for her half the people in the house would have been snoring. She led the cast vocally and dramatically. The Willow Song and Ave Maria brought me to tears. I'm pretty sure most other people were teary-eyed by the end also. The last scene was so intense, she was screaming when he was strangling her and everyone was on edge. And she fell off the bed and down the stairs. Ouch. It looked like it hurt and, despite her awkward position, she didn't move a muscle the whole rest of the opera. Renee Fleming is/was (yes, me and my friends have officially made it a compliment) BEASTLY.
I enjoyed John Botha. I wasn't thrilled by his singing, since I was brought up on Domingo's Otello, and his acting was just blah. Desdemona asks "You are crying?" ... I didn't see any crying, moaning, or whatever else she says he did. He just put his head against the wall. And him thrashing on the ground was nothing short of awkward. Whatever, I still enjoyed it. When he smacked Renee across the face I wanted to yell "Excuse me, no one slaps Renee around!" But I remembered "Oh duh, it's just a performance." Silly me.
I'm not sure what people's problem is with Carlo Guelfi. He sounded and looked fine in the house. He wasn't AMAZING, but I don't think he deserved some of the harsh criticism he got. It's probably one of those "sounds great in the house, but not on recording/broadcasts" situations.

Post on Carmen later...


Happy Listening!!! =)

Gratitude

Thanks to two amazing friends, the best godfather ever, and Standing Room I will BE ABLE TO SEE RENEE IN OTELLO (this Saturday) and ALSO see Olga Borodina in Carmen that SAME EVENING.

It's too complicated to explain how it all came about. It makes my brain hurt. *ow*

That Saturday will consist of countless subway rides, one rushed lunch, a quick phone call to the Met, and one tired chickie at the end of the night. (Not necessarily in that exact order.) It will somehow all get done and I will be blogging from my cell phone (um, that's not a promise!) during the Otello intermissions, but will have a full review of the Carmen hopefully the next day.

I just have to say again that my two best friends are REALLY the BEST friends an opera buff like me could ask for and that my super amazing and totally cool godfather is, well, super amazing, totally cool, and, might I add, molto bello!!!!! =) lol

Happy Listening!!! =)

PS. To those of you that kept telling me to get Standing Room tickets, thank you as well because if everyone had not insisted then I probably wouldn't have fought as hard! Thanks! <3

Thank You For the Music, The Songs I'm Singin', Thanks for all the Joy Their Bringing, Who Can Live Without It? I Ask In All Honesty....

What would life be? Without a song or a dance what are we? So I say thank you for the music, for giving it to me!

Thank you, Renee, for giving me some of the most beautiful music I've ever heard; for making me laugh and making me cry and making me a completely different person. I never thought it was possible, but you just get better and better as time goes on. Some people don't realize everything that you have given to the opera world and what you have given to people like me.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RENEE, MY FAVE SINGER AND BFFAEAEAEAEAE!!!!

Renee Fleming:
No. Words.



Happy Listening!!! =)
AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Dilemma!!!

My parents gave me an ultimatum:

Renee in Othello

or

Juan Deigo in Fille


Because I can't go to both? They have to go to one together and they have to choose between those two. Even though I chose "Manon Lescaut" for them to go to they have dinner plans for that night. I'm desperate!!!

My favorite soprano, or my favorite tenor. Let's see.... Hard decision? YES. Once in a lifetime or once in a liftime... Let's weigh the pros and cons. I have been begging to see Renee for some time now and I already saw Juan Diego in "Barbiere" last season. Renee is doing two productions next year. Juan Diego's next NY "Fille" is a few seasons away (but stillllll). Pros... cons.... Still can't decide!

Does anyone have any idea what I should do??? Please help me!!!


Happy Listening!!! =)

Norma "wasn't a fit" for Renee Fleming

To my disappointment Renee Fleming decided that she will never ever sing Bellini's Norma. Ever. Did I mention she said never? The BSO concert version at Tanglewood has no been replaced by "Eugene Onegin" and the Met will have to find someone else for their 2011 new production. The people at Score Desk are rather upset.
HOWEVER, (and there is always a "however") we are super duper proud of Renee for not becoming one of those sopranos who decides "I can sing whatever I want and it doesn't matter that I can't sing it properly!" We live in a world where Mimis sing Toscas and Adinas become Violettas. It's really nice to know that we have people like Renee Fleming who know when enough is enough and a role just isn't right. If Renee keeps up the good judgement she could be singing in her prime for the next ten years at least! Now that she dropped Norma she can move on to other things we would like to hear her in... say Anna Bolena or Marie in "Die Tote Stadt"?? Well, we will see what happens.

Happy Listening!! =)

So much for promising myself I would go...

...to Renee Fleming's La Traviata this season. And, of course, she conveniently decided that these were going to be her final Met Traviatas.

=( =( So, when my grandchildren ask "Grandma, did you ever see Renee Fleming as Violetta?" I will have to solemnly shake my head no. It's not completely my fault! By the time I got back from Italy every single seat for every single performance was sold out. The entire run! I'm not even kidding! Alright, I guess I'll just have to deal with her Desdemona ONLY. Well, yea, that's still pretty amazing. Seeing one of the greatest sopranos of this generation in one of her calling cards is, yes, pretty spectacular. =)

Oh, and by the way, Aprille Millo=life.

Happy Listening!! =)