The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
Category: San Francisco Opera
-
* Notes * Today's matinée performance of Ariodante was the San Francisco Opera premiere of Händel's 33rd opera, which was first performed at Covent Garden in 1735. John Copley's production is slightly busy, there is a lot of movement to offset the supposed statis of the libretto. For the most part this was not distracting,…
-
* Program * “Per me giunto” from Don CarloYoung Joo An, baritone and Allen Perriello, piano “Sgombra è la sacra selva” from NormaNatasha Flores, mezzo-soprano and Alan Hamilton, piano “La donna è mobile” from RigolettoNathaniel Peake, tenor and Dennis Doubin, piano “Tu che di gel sei cinta” from TurandotRena Harms, soprano and Carl Pantle, piano…
-
* 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…
-
Yesterday evening Kip Cranna moderated the last San Francisco Opera Insight Panel Discussion of the season. The three panelists were conductor and Houston Grand Opera's Music Director Patrick Summers, mezzo-soprano Susan Graham (Ariodante), and bass-baritone Eric Owens (King of Scotland). Kip Cranna began the evening by asking which opera this summer was in Italian, set in Scotland,…
-
The 29 Merolini for 2008 were interviewed by San Francisco Opera Center Director Sheri Greenawald and Merola Opera Board of Directors Chairman Jayne Davis yesterday evening, in the Green Room of the War Memorial Veterans Building. We learned that baritone Young Joo An went to high school with current Adler Fellow Ji Young Yang and…
-
Dr. Clifford (Kip) Cranna began his 30th year with San Francisco Opera on June 4, 2008. He will receive the San Francisco Opera Medal before the second performance of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor this season, on Friday, June 20. Cranna was named director of music administration for San Francisco Opera at the end of last month, and was…
-
Matthew Shilvock has been appointed Assistant General Director of San Francisco Opera. Press Release [PDF] | San Francisco Opera
-
* Notes * Francesca Zambello's American-inspired Das Rheingold opened last night at San Francisco Opera. The video projections, the work of Jan Hartley, varied from completely campy to tastefully elegant. The first projections did have me in stitches though, and not in a good way. They looked like the opening credits to the Star Wars…
-
Kip Cranna moderated a panel discussion on Das Rheingold yesterday evening at Herbst Theatre. The panelists included conductor Donald Runnicles, baritone Mark Delavan (Wotan), baritone Richard Paul Fink (Alberich), mezzo-soprano Jennifer Larmore (Fricka), and associate director Christian Räth. There was a fair amount of good natured teasing between the singers and conductor. Everyone was quite…
-
Summer Season Press Release | SF Opera’s Official Site | Francesca Zambello’s Official Site for this Production | Bloomberg Preview Summer Season Previews: San Francisco Chronicle | Sentinel | Examiner Interviews of Former Adler Fellow Mark Delavan (Wotan): KQED’s The Do List [MP3] | San Francisco Chronicle | San Jose Mercury News | Contra Costa Times Events: Opera Insight Panel Discussion (June 2, 2008) | Gold Rush…
The Opera Tattler 