Today it was announced that there will be a citywide festival for the Ring Cycle from April 15 through June 30, 2010. Los Angeles Opera's Der Ring des Nibelungen runs from May 29 until June 26, 2010.
The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
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Much was said about the faltering economy. Porgy and Bess has been cast, though not all the contracts have been signed. Eric Owens will be Porgy and Laquita Mitchell sings Bess. The cinemacasts continue next Spring, with The Magic Flute, Lucia, Elixir, and La Bohème. As for next season, there will be a Richard Strauss opera conducted by Luisotti, but it is not Die Schweigsame Frau or Capriccio. (Gockley declined to name which opera it was but we've heard Salomé mentioned several times on different occasions.) The next world premiere is planned for 2011-2012.
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11. October 2008: Final Dress Rehearsal
Review from Dodaro15. October 2008: Opening
Opera Tattler Review18. October 2008: From the Orchestra
* An announcement was made that Alice Coote was ill, but was graciously singing despite this. She started off poorly, but did sound lovely for the most part, at least in Acts II and III.
* There were many watch alarms, including one with at least 8 beeps in a row. One would think someone would tell the owner of the watch to turn it off, but no, it sounded at both 9pm and 10pm. Unfortunately, 9pm was during Ilia's "Se il padre perdei." Kurt Streit also coughed once as Genia Kühmeier sang this aria.
* People whispered and talked quite a bit.
* Kurt Streit did not have as much trouble with his costume, it did not seem to get caught on the set this time. His singing is very compelling.
* Iano Tamar had more trouble with her "Tutte nel cor vi sento" than in the opening performance. She was more audible this time, but her intonation suffered. However, the other arias were better, especially "Idol mio."
* I was very kindly given a third row seat in the premium orchestra section after the first intermission. It is incredible what one can see from that close up.21. October 2008: From the Balcony
* As I waited for standing room to open, I heard Genia Kühmeier practicing her first recitative and aria. Then someone was heard playing bagpipe from across the street.
* There are some cuts, but these are mostly of recitative.
* The performance was consistent with the previous ones, Acts II and III are stronger than Act I.
* The pain in Kurt Streit's "Fuor del mar" is palpable.24. October 2008: Daniela Mack as Idamante
* An announcement was made that Alice Coote had hurt her back, and Daniela Mack was singing Idamante. Mack's vibrato is a bit too wide for Mozart. Though her voice is not as breathy, it lacks the warmth and resonance of Coote's.
* Two arias are cut from Act III, Arbace's "Se colà ne' fati è scritto" and Idomeneo's "Torna la pace al core."
* Most of the repeats are not taken.
* The matinée audience was characteristically ill-behaved. Late-comers were boggled that they could not get to their seats and were kept in standing room. A particular woman with her child was especially irritating. Her mobile phone rang and she was unable to silence it without making a huge fuss. She also spoke aloud, and huffed when I hushed her. So much the worse for her, as she paid more attention to the recitatives and not the arias.
* There were many beeps, perhaps coming from the machine associated with OperaVision on the north side of the building in balcony standing room. Someone came to look at the machine during the second intermissions, but it still seemed to make noises.28. October 2008: Daniela Mack from the Orchestra
* Evidently, they did not want to pay for someone better suited to the role of Idamante as the cover. It is too bad, given that Mack does have a good voice, it is just not shown to best effect here.
* Kurt Streit sounded like he was on the verge of breaking, one felt like his voice would crack at any moment during Acts II and III. This was exciting, but scary.
* There were numerous beeps and some feedback, perhaps from OperaVision, though it was difficult to pin-point.
* The audience was pretty quiet, though someone had a rather loud, rustling jacket in standing room.31. October 2008: Halloween
* Unfortunately, Alice Coote did not end up returning for the last performance. Daniela Mack still sounded tentative, her first aria was shaky ("Non ho colpa"), though her second one ("l padre adorato") went better. She sounded fine in the quartet in Act III.
* Kurt Streit sounded less on edge than in the penultimate performance. His vibrato could be somewhat wide, but still controlled.
* I hope to hear Genia Kühmeier again soon, her voice is just so lovely.
* Something must have happened during the overture, as there was much giggling at one point.
* There was no noticeable electronic noise, interestingly.
* The audience was fairly good, but there were a couple of latecomers that talked for an incredible length of time and had no regard for the various people giving them dirty looks.
* For Halloween, I dressed as Carmen, and someone had her photo taken with me.Leave a comment
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* Notes *
Alex Ross was interviewed yesterday by San Francisco Chronicle music critic Joshua Kosman as part of the JCCSF's Arts & Ideas series. We heard about how Ross was surprised by a phone call from Chicago one Monday, and his concern it was about the repossession of his cats. Of course, it was the MacArthur Foundation, letting him know he had was one of the 2008 MacArthur Fellows. It was an entertaining conversation, we learned that The New Yorker offices are not filled with doddering alcoholic writers spouting witticisms and that Ross' first draft of The Rest is Noise was 1,200 pages long and took two years to cut down. It certainly was fun to hear about how Ross came to 20th century music as college student, and how he didn't know that one was not supposed to like Stockhausen, Ligeti, Britten, and Vaughan Williams all at the same time. Read a more complete account of what happened over here.* Tattling *
Fisher Hall was sold out and the crowd was exceedingly respectful. Ross took questions from the audience, and we were treated to an anecdote about Jackie Kennedy's response to Aaron Copland's Connotations.I had my copy of The Rest is Noise signed by Mr. Ross, and I was too shy to mention The Opera Tattler to him. Thankfully, the author of Not For Fun Only piped up about it, so I got to be completely abashed, etc. I also had the pleasure of meeting Joshua Kosman, who regaled me with a fine tattle about loud snoring at a recent symphony performance.
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San Francisco Opera will show live election results before next Tuesday's performance of Boris Godunov, starting at 6 pm. They will also provide results during the intermission.
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* Notes *
The new production of L'elisir d'amore at San Francisco Opera is quite winning. Adapted from a co-production with Opera Colorado, Boston Lyric Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre and Fort Worth Opera, here the setting was moved to a small town in the Napa Valley during World War I. James Robinson's direction was strong, and all of the acting was convincing and even funny. The set, from Allen Moyer, is simple without being stark, and has no large moving parts. Perhaps a change of scenery between acts would have been nice, but nonetheless, the gazebo used is versitile enough for all the scenes. Martin Pakledinaz used a pastel palette for the costumes, for the most part they were lovely, though the print of Adina's second costume did not read well from afar. Paul Palazzo's lighting was unobstrusive, there might have been one mishap as far as the lights, just as Giannetta and the female chorus come onstage for Act II Scene 4, the transition from a full lights to something more dim was not smooth.Bruno Campanella took the overture a bit sluggishly, and though orchestra sounded in tune and together with each other, they were somewhat slow. The chorus did a splendid job, as usual. As for the soloists, they fit their roles well. Ji Young Yang (Giannetta) sang effortlessly, and was especially good in Act II. Alessandro Corbelli was a hilarious Dulcamara, his parlando is crisp, though he was a bit faster than the orchestra a few times. Giorgio Caoduro was likewise very good at the physical humor required for this opera, his Belcore was suitably full of himself. Caoduro's voice is pleasant and somewhat husky. Inva Mula's debut was impressive, her voice has good volume and can be quite beautiful. She does have moments of shrillness, at times her control is not completely perfect. Her Adina played off of Ramón Vargas' Nemorino very well, both moved well. Vargas sounded absolutely lovely, his "Una furtiva lagrima" was gorgeous.
* Tattling *
The audience was somewhat sparse and there were very few late-comers. Some whispering was noted in Act I, but the beginning of Act II was worse, at least for me, as a rather uncouth couple sat near where I was standing in Row ZZ. Not only did they talk during the music, the female half of the couple opened her phone and read a text message. At least they were silent when hushed.Leave a comment
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Production Web Site | Press Photographs
2008 Performance Reviews: The Opera Tattler | Civic Center | Ionarts | SFist | San Francisco Classical Voice | San Francisco Chronicle
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Though the Fall portion of the San Francisco Opera season is half over, I'm still slowly working my way through an opera cupcake painting project based on what we've seen so far. This is a rendering of Act II Scene 2 of The Bonesetter's Daughter. Precious Cupcake was the most fun to paint, for obvious reasons.
Details of Painting | Performance Review of The Bonesetter's Daughter
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This account of the final dress of Boris comes from Upstairs Tenor, who is an usher and supernumerary at San Francicsco Opera.
* Notes *
After sitting through both the dress rehearsal and premiere, and being lulled nearly to sleep by both, I can say without hesitation that this production of Boris Godunov is one of the dullest I've ever seen, partially due to the very version of the opera performed. I question the choice of the 1869 edition of the opera, without Mussogorsky's effective rewrites. I suspect the choice of edition was due partially to showcase Sam Ramey (who fared significantly better on the dress than he did on opening night, both vocally and dramatically) and partially to spare the expenditure of hiring a mezzo to sing Marina. In any case, the production itself needs a firmer hand at the wheel than Julia Pevzner, who allowed the dramatic tension (of which, when the opera is done right, there is plenty) to lag almost constantly. Reports from friends and involved in the production indicated that the rehearsal period was extremely chaotic, and it showed. The Coronation scene needed to be re-thought entirely, as did the scene between the Tsar's children and the nurse. (I hated the use of the giant map.) On the positive side, the inn scene crackled with energy, and I for one enjoyed the "build-up" of the Simpleton as an observer; He is such an important character that seems to come from nowhere in the opera, having him as a silent observer actually made sense.I share everyone's enthusiasm for Andrew Bidlack, who I have been impressed with in the past, especially in The Little Prince. His performance was exemplary Vladimir Ognovenko was another obvious standout; his years of experience with the part, which he does often with the Kirov Opera, paid off gloriously. One must credit Vitalij Kowalijow and Vsevolod Grivnov for doing what they could with the dramatically dead Cloister scene, a prime example of what I call "Gurnemanz Syndrome," in which a bass gives exposition for about twenty minutes. Both sang well, Grivnov marking slightly, as did Kenneth Kellogg as the Police Officer. Jack Gorlin, the treble singing Fyodor was amplified unobtrusively on opening night but left to hold his own at the dress, which he was unable to do.
I noticed one change in staging between dress and performance: at the dress, both of Boris' children came onstage to say their farewells, and Xenia (who does not sing in the scene), spent her time onstage quietly sobbing. This was cut on opening night, and only Fyodor was present for his father's last address.
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I heard a watch alarm or two in the orchestra, but no cell phones went off. That is not to say they weren't on, as a man sitting a few seats down from me kept looking at his messages or getting the time or checking his mail or something. Whatever it was, it was irritating, and no matter how long I gave him a look, he kept doing it. He finally stopped in the middle of Act II, which turned out not to be enthralling enough for a man several rows behind me, who fell asleep and let out a loud snore before being nudged awake by a small girl sitting a seat down from him.There were plenty of onstage mishaps and errors: a super's hat fell off during the inn scene and the lighting effect for the Simpleton's aria didn't work correctly when one of the floor panels containing light banks didn't pop up in time. To the enjoyment of the entire audience, when Mr. Ramey died with a tremendous fall to the stage, he did not account for the stage's slope and fell too far downstage, and was forced to roll upstage after the music stopped so they could bring down the curtain. During the curtain call, Ognovenko bowed out of costume and Grivnov emerged without his wig.
An error in the program noticed both at dress and performance: Matthew O'Neill plays two roles, Missail and the Boyar-in-attendance, but is only listed as playing Missail.
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* Notes *
Last night's press opening of L'Histoire du Soldat and Renard at Oakland Opera Theater was highly entertaining. Both pieces are based on Russian folk tales but were translated into English for this production. This works well, especially for L'Histoire du Soldat, which does not include any singing. Reset to the present day by Rebecca Lenkewicz, the work is meant to be "lue, jouée et dansée," and it certainly was. Some of the text did sound slightly ridiculous, there was much rhyming that seemed forced and somewhat ungainly. Also, the updating is inexact, one doubts very much, for instance, that the General could really offer up his daughter in marriage as a reward in 2008. However, the players did well with it, Kirya Traber displayed her acting talents as the Narrator, speaking the words of many of the characters. Her enunciation was strong, though I wish she had been a bit more down stage whilst the orchestra played as the brass instruments did make her difficult to hear. Mattias Bossi was suitably unctous as the Devil, and provided fine comic relief. Ben Jones gave a perfectly good performance as the titular Soldier, his dancing with Abigail Munn (Princess) was impressive. Munn's movements were all very clear, and she was the best of the dancers. The dancing in the finale was remarkably unsexy, perhaps the heels worn by the dancers were to blame. The orchestra sounded jaunty under the direction of Deidre McClure, and the violin solos were quite beautiful.The orchestra was perfectly together during the second half of the evening as well, though there was much competition for attention. Soprano Kimarie Torre sang Stravinsky's "Pastorale" (1907) before Renard, her voice is cold but pleasant, not at all shrill. Renard, Histoire burlesque chantée et jouée was utterly delightful, including both burlesque dancing and all manner of circus arts. The singers sat with the orchestra, up stage, but for the most part they were audible. Tenor Ben Jones has a warm, clear voice with good volume, while tenor Darron Flagg has perhaps a prettier voice but was less loud. They were quite distinct, in any case. Igor Vieira's baritone is quite rich, and the percussiveness of his singing was apparent. Bass Richard Mix seemed a bit quiet at first, but his volume improved during the course of the piece.
The dancing was very cute, and the costumes were completely adorable. David Hunt juggled knives, walked a slack rope, and spun hoops around his limbs with aplomb as the Rooster. Erin Schrader (Cat) did well with the hula hoop and the aerial hoop. Breonna Noack acted well as Renard, her contortions showed her incredible flexibility and her work on aerial silks was certainly fun to watch.
* Tattling *
There was a little whispering during the music, but no electronic noise whatsoever. The house looked entirely full, and the seats are set close together and tied for fire code purposes, so it was not terribly comfortable. The person to my left did elbow me in the arm several times. He also managed to kick me in the shin, though he did apologize aloud for this. As marvelous as circus arts are at the opera, it was annoying that the audience applauded for the juggling during the music.Leave a comment
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