The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
Category: Rehearsal
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* Notes * Riccardo Muti conducted the New York Philharmonic in a program of Lizst, Elgar, and Prokofiev last Thursday, and I attended a lively open rehearsal in that morning. The orchestra was in street clothes, as one would expect, and Muti himself was perfectly coiffed, looking foppish in his hot pink sweater. Lizst's Les Préludes,…
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* Notes * The latest revival of La Bohème at San Francisco Opera may be very good indeed, if the final dress rehearsal was any indication. Though I am not crazy about La Gheorghiu, all the signs are good, she may well look and sound completely convincing as Mimi by the opening on Sunday. The rest…
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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…
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The Opera Tattler was not able to attend the final dress for Idomeneo last Saturday, so sent one Dodaro in her stead. Below are Dodaro's comments. * Notes * The final dress rehearsal of San Francisco Opera's Idomeneo was promising. The singing was generally strong. Neptune's wrath included an awful lot of strobe light flashes.…
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I'm afraid that final dress rehearsal of San Francisco Opera's The Bonesetter's Daughter has left me nearly speechless, and considered summing up my reaction in exactly two words. But I certainly don't want to ruin it for you, gentle readers. Instead, I offer some images that came to mind whilst watching the production. …
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* Notes * The final dress rehearsal of San Francisco Opera's Simon Boccanegra was impressive. Elijah Moshinsky's Covent Garden production is the one that premiered at San Francisco in 2001 during the Verdi Festival. The sillier parts of the production were removed, Verdi does not appear, and no one is wrapped in blue fabric. The transitions between scenes are…
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* Notes * If the final dress rehearsal of Ariodante last night was any indication, I will likely go to as many performances of it as possible. The cast is strong, of course Susan Graham and Ruth Ann Swenson are wonderful, but debuting Sonia Prina, Veronica Cangemi, and Richard Croft are not disappointing either. The…
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* Notes * Verdi’s Macbeth opens tonight at San Francisco Opera, with Thomas Hampson in the title role. I was fortunate enough to attend the final dress rehearsal last Sunday, and was at least impressed with Hampson. David Pountney’s production, directed by Nicola Raab, is the consummate Regieoper that San Francisco seems to dislike so.…
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* Notes * The final dress rehearsal of Appomattox was last night. On the whole, I found the music, libretto, and production rather dark and a bit heavy-handed. The music, unsurprisingly, is reiterative and the singing style more declamatory than lyrical. There are no soaring high notes, but this does keep the text clear, at…
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* Notes * My enthusiasm for opera is well-known enough for the people around me to have picked up on it. It was my good fortune to be given a staff guest ticket for the final dress rehearsal of Der Rosenkavalier last Wednesday. I have been to dress rehearsals before, but only in the Grand…
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