The Opera Tattler

Reviews of Performances and their Audiences

Recent posts

Month: November 2023

  • SF Opera’s L’Elisir d’Amore

    * Notes * A new production of L'elisir d'amore opened at San Francisco Opera this afternoon. Updated to the 1950s and set in the Italian Riviera, today's performance was a delight to see and hear. This co-production with Lyric Opera of Chicago is definitely festive. The action takes place at the restaurant of the Hotel Adina…

  • Opera San José’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia

    * Notes * Il barbiere di Siviglia opened at Opera San José last Saturday, but I attended the matinée on Sunday. The performance was a cartoonish delight with lots of pleasant singing. In his Opera San José debut Stephen Lawless directed this new production, which might not have had the best sense of space but…

  • SF Opera’s Omar

    * Notes * Omar, an opera about a West African Islamic scholar sold into slavery, opened at San Francisco Opera this afternoon. The opera by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels is an artful combination of rhythms, syncopation, textures, and lyricism. The main character of the opera, Omar ibn Said, is based on a real person who…