The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
Category: Opera Review
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* Notes * Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito is nearly through a run at Los Angeles Opera. The singing is top-notch with strong support from the orchestra and a sumptuous staging. The new production, directed by Thaddeus Strassberger, who also designed the scenery, is recalls the Pre-Raphaelites, especially Frederic Leighton. There are many projections, and this…
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* Notes * Francesco Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur had a final performance this season last night at the Metropolitan Opera. There was much prettiness in the music, staging, and singing. The new David McVicar production is very droll, everything looks nice and Rococo, as the piece is set in 1730. There is one long pause between Acts…
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* Notes * Debussy's mysterious Pelléas et Mélisande (pictured left, photograph by Karen Almond) had a splendid fourth performance this season at the Metropolitan Opera yesterday. Though the singing was lovely, the real stars of the show was conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the orchestra. The production is straight-forward enough, the revolving set is made of walls…
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* Notes * Mariusz Treliński's 2015 striking production of Iolanta (pictured left, photograph by Marty Sohl) and Bluebeard's Castle at the Metropolitan Opera was revived last night. The singing in both operas is wonderful, and conductor Henrik Nánási had a fine Met debut. The production is highly-detailed, with an attractive set. There are lots of projections.…
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* Notes * Opera Parallèle revived last year's production of The Little Prince this weekend at the Marines' Memorial Theatre. The opera is perfectly charming and the feminist twist of having mostly female principals worked well. I had a better appreciation for Nicholas Wright's libretto this time around — it is concise — condensing some 90…
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* Notes *The West Coast premiere of It's a Wonderful Life (Act II pictured left, photograph by Cory Weaver) opened at San Francisco Opera on November 17. Based on Frank Capra's holiday film, the music here by Jake Heggie is sugary sweet, and though reminiscent of Bernstein is very much his own. There was fine…
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* Notes *An elegant co-production of Arabella (Act III pictured left, photograph by Cory Weaver) opened at San Francisco Opera last night. The orchestra and singers were all very strong in Strauss' glittering Viennese comedy. The huge cast for this opera boasted many familiar faces, from mezzo-soprano Jill Grove (Merola 1995) as the fortune-teller to…
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* Notes *This weekend Opera Parallèle is in Carmel for In the Penal Colony as part of the Days and Nights Festival. Philip Glass' potent chamber opera from 2000 is a perfect match for this company and the production gets to the nightmarish core of the short story from Kafka. Maestra Nicole Paiement conducted the…
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* Notes * The new production of Tosca (Act II with Scott Hendricks as Scarpia, Joel Sorensen as Spoletta, and Carmen Giannattasio as Tosca pictured left; photograph by Cory Weaver) that opened last night at San Francisco Opera is an ideal first opera. The set looks like a meticulous reproduction of the places featured within Rome…
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* Notes *A winsome cast (Matthew Grills as Belmonte and Rebecca Davis as Konstanze pictured, photograph by Pat Kirk) opened the Opera San José 2018-2019 season with the delightful music of Die Entführung aus dem Serail yesterday night. Mozart's jaunty Singspiel is a joy to experience with the young soloists, the sprightly orchestra, and gorgeous…
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