The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
Category: San Francisco Opera
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* Notes * Cycle 1 of Der Ring des Nibelungen at San Francisco Opera concluded with Götterdämmerung (final scene of Act II pictured left, photo by Cory Weaver) yesterday evening. Francesca Zambello's production went more smoothly than at the prima earlier this month. The final scene had more impact, and Brünnhilde's torch did not go out…
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* Notes * Cycle 1 of Der Ring des Nibelungen at San Francisco Opera continued last night with Die Walküre (Act III pictured left, photo by Cory Weaver). Francesca Zambello's production shows the human side of every character, both God and hero alike are shown as flawed yet accessible. The use of fire, dogs, and parachuting…
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* Notes * Francesca Zambello’s “American” Ring opened with Das Rheingold Tuesday night at San Francisco Opera. Many of the video projections (by Jan Hartley) had been changed. Instead of reminding one of screen-savers, they look more like scenes from a Lord of the Rings video game. The projections for the beginning were a vast…
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Yesterday evening Kip Cranna moderated a panel discussion on Der Ring des Nibelungen (Das Rheingold Scene 1 pictured left, photo by Cory Weaver) which opens next today at San Francisco Opera. The panelists were mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Bishop (Fricka), baritone Mark Delavan (Wotan, Wanderer), baritone Gordon Hawkins (Alberich), tenor Brandon Jovanovich (Siegmund), soprano Heidi Melton (Sieglinde…
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* Notes * If yesterday’s final dress rehearsal of San Francisco Opera‘s Die Walküre (Mark Delavan and Nina Stemme pictured left; photo from the 2010 production by Cory Weaver) is any indication, the cast is disconcertingly strong. Given how gorgeous last year’s Walküre was, the promise of an even better run now is remarkable. *…
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* Notes * The final dress rehearsal of San Francisco Opera‘s Das Rheingold (Mark Delavan, Jennifer Larmore, Tamara Wapinsky, Charles Taylor, and Jason Collins pictured left; photo from the 2008 production by Terrence McCarthy) was yesterday. Nearly 70% of the cast has changed from the opening San Francisco performances of this production three years ago,…
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This month tenor Brandon Jovanovich (pictured left, photograph by Peter Dressel) has role debuts of Froh and Siegmund in San Francisco Opera‘s Der Ring des Nibelungen. In August, Jovanovich sings Věc Makropulos at the Salzburg Festival. Next season he performs in Cologne, Munich, Chicago, Berlin, Houston, and Washington, DC. The Opera Tattler spoke to Jovanovich…
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Production Web Site | SF Opera’s Ring Blog Here we have a photograph from Cory Weaver of the Act III, Scene 3 of San Francisco Opera’s Götterdämmerung with Nina Stemme (Brünnhilde), Stacey Tappan (Woglinde), Renee Tatum (Flosshilde), Lauren McNeese (Wellgunde), Melissa Citro (Gutrune), and Ian Storey (Siegfried). Sunday’s performance was impressive, and one looks forward…
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* Notes * Today’s premiere of Götterdämmerung (Act II pictured left, photo by Cory Weaver) at San Francisco Opera was arresting. Maestro Donald Runnicles had the orchestra sounding vivid and beautiful. There were bad notes and cloudiness here and there in the brass, but nonetheless it hardly mattered. The woodwinds were evocative, the strings shimmering. The…
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* Notes * The final dress rehearsal of San Francisco Opera‘s Götterdämmerung (Heidi Melton, Daveda Karanas, and Ronnita Miller pictured left; photo by Cory Weaver) was last Thursday. According to Miss LCU, there was still a great deal of chaos as far as the staging is concerned, but parts were quite strong. Much of the…
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