September 12- October 3 2015: Gianni Schicchi and Pagliacci
October 8-11 2015: Song From the Uproar
October 30-31 2015: Dracula
October 31- November 28 2015: Moby-Dick
November 21- December 13 2015: Norma
February 13- March 6 2016: Die Zauberflöte
March 12- April 3 2016: Madama Butterfly
May 14- June 12 2016: La bohème
June 16-19 2016: Anatomy Theater
The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
8 responses to “LA Opera’s 2015-2016 Season”
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Well, I’m probably going to be in the minority here, so I’m ready to take my pounding for it. But it takes a lot of chutzpah for CEO Christopher Koelsch to claim “we’re creating a new model of what an opera company can be.” If this is LA Opera’s new model, then things are not looking good for them at all.
Three Puccini operas. No French operas (again). Magic Flute (again). No Russian operas (again). No German operas except for… surprise… Magic Flute (again).
I guess I would be tempted to see Domingo as Gianni Schicchi, even though his voice is waning fast these days and he’s not a natural fit for it. It could be a hoot, especially with Woody Allen’s staging. But you could never convince me to part with good money to listen to Marco Berti slaughtering the role of Canio in Pagliacci. His voice is simply awful — horribly produced and full of long straight notes that seem ready to crack. Moby Dick is the brightest spot in the season, followed closely by a few non-staged evenings — Erwin Schrott in concert, and the single night event of Domingo and Fleming singing together for the opera’s 30th anniversary. I’m not sold yet on Angela Meade (her voice seems to be developing a wobble), so Norma is a bit iffy for me. I also know that Barrie Kosky’s Magic Flute was very popular, but producing it only two years after it was last staged? And ending the season with Butterly and Boheme (the latter of which wasting Gustavo Dudamel in his house debut for the final two performances, with unremarkable singers, at the end of the opera’s run)?
The rest is just filler to try and distract people from the fact that LA Opera never truly recovered from Achim Freyer’s disastrous Ring cycle several years back, which incidentally almost bankrupted the company. I’m jealous of those of you in San Francisco who will be getting to see McVicar’s production of Troyens with Bryan Hymel and Susan Graham this summer along with Michael Fabiano, Diana Damrau, and Karita Mattila next season.LikeLike
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Agree on almost all points with Papageno. Had EXACTLY the same thought in reading Koelsch’s absurd comment. The company must be in dire shape to come up with a blighted season like this, with such B-list casting (notwithstanding Domingo and his baritone novelty act). I will not renew my subscription, since there is absolutlely nothing here that appeals to me except the Norma (because of Jamie Barton, whom I am dying to hear). Rather alarmed to hear your fears re Angela Meade – isn’t she still quite young?
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Hi Ned,
Yeah, she’s still pretty young, which is why I was concerned. I heard a few clips of Meade singing and some of her more recent performances seem to have a slight wobble in the voice (except when she floats the top). But it’s really hard to judge based off of that (could have been just a bad night or two which happens to anyone). That’s why I’m still hemming and hawing on Norma. I’ve never heard the opera performed, and I’d really love to see it. Jamie Barton is indeed wonderful. Lovely voice.
Moby Dick is also a possibility, but the rest of the season is just a head shaker. As far as the B-list casting is concerned, I guess this means a lot of the top singers just won’t come here anymore (or as you pointed out, LA Opera is in pretty rough shape). But heck, Dallas Opera got some better singers than we did this season. And San Francisco blows LA right out of the water.LikeLike
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The Gianni Schicchi should be interesting, and I want to see this Flute, since I missed it last time. Moby-Dick is worth experiencing, but having seen this in San Diego and San Francisco, I wouldn’t make a special trip to LA for it.
It is an alarming amount of Puccini.LikeLike
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Jamie Barton is certainly worth hearing.
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I’m excited to see Kosky’s Magic Flute again (and bring a few friends). Over the past few years LA Opera has had some fantastic productions: Freyer’s Ring, Einstein on the Beach, Dido/Bluebeard. But I think that the regular crowds just want the traditional and usual stuff…
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I wish they’d do Otello as much as they do Madame Butterfly, which is at least every other year. I’m still waiting for a first Meistersinger in LA, but we get only more crowd pleasers like Butterly, Carmen, Traviata, Puccini – again and again and again.
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Freyer’s Ring was only disastrous in the economic sense. Whatever else you can say about Freyer, he knows the Ring. It (and Recovered Voices) was the best thing that LA Opera ever did! It was the most ambitious, risky and costly undertaking for the LA Opera and I applaud them for it! LA Opera has been in recovery mode ever since, fleeing costly Wagnerian dramas and loading up on the frivolous empty calories and melodramas of Puccini, Bel Canto and other crowd pleasers to stay afloat. How unfortunate LA isn’t an opera town able to sustain annual Wagner and once a decade Rings. But we do have Dudamel conducting Mahler across the street! Yippee!
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