Rossini’s operatic world is a crossroads of things: the formal conventions of arias, duets, cavatina, patter number, the stock characters of the Commedia dell’arte, a hotchpotch of contemporary patriarchal and orientalist stereotypes, and reheated scenarios from various librettists. How do modern audiences, relatively unmoored from this world, connect with these shows? A Brilliant Production In this new production of “Il {…}
It is an under-appreciated coincidence that Janacek’s searing opera of bourgeois repressiveness and psychological collapse appears in the same year as fellow Moravian Sigmund Freud’s “Beyond the Pleasure Principle” and his study of “Mass Psychology” (they were, in fact, born mere miles apart). “Kat’a Kabanova” is a psychic drama of shame and self-hatred. As in Freud’s work, Janacek creates a {…}
To call the Teatro Real de Madrid’s “Peter Grimes” production anything but an artistic miracle would be a disservice to what has been accomplished by the production team, cast, and conductor, all of whom performed at the highest level. The production undeniably drew great controversy during its production stages, with reports of a COVID outbreak delaying the production confirmed by {…}
Every Friday, Polina Lyapustina delivers a short essay on some of the most essential topics in the industry with the intent of establishing a dialogue about the opera world and its future. Two weeks ago, AGMA, working for the Met chorus, dancers, and soloists, finished negotiations with the Metropolitan Opera and agreed on a final deal for all the groups of artists {…}
In modern Italy, where the operatic art is literally falling apart at both institutional and performing levels, the audience still carries the memory of seeing the greatest operatic performances in history, and is eager to hear anyone who could put all the precious pieces together again. So, there was no surprise to see the hall of Maggio Musicale Fiorentino filled {…}
The first Act of “Die Walküre” is undeniably a grand love song. Wagner’s dramatization of the encounter between Siegmund and Sieglinde—the Walsüng twins—is a remarkable and thrilling experience; even when it is an abridged concert version, performed in a faraway opera house with half a live audience, socially distanced, without the theatrical panoply of full-site production, full costumes and full {…}
The Dutch National Opera like many Opera Houses around the world has not been able to perform live since the COVID-19 pandemic began. As a result, it has been offering some streamed performances. On this occasion, the company presented an homage to Donizetti’s Tudor Queens and previewed the three operas which will be programmed during the next three seasons. In {…}
(Credit: PIG Studio) The American soprano Sondra Radvanovsky triumphed at the Gran Teatre del Liceu with an unprecedented concert performing the three final scenes of Donizetti’s Tudor trilogy: “Anna Bolena,” “Maria Stuarda” and “Roberto Devereux.” Very few sopranos have dared to sing these three scenes in the same concert due to their vocal and dramatic challenges. It’s a long concert {…}
Photo: Michele Monasta Sometimes an opera can be so addictive that you cannot get it out of your mind for hours or even days after you’ve heard it. The world created by the piece might be so convincing or the passion and struggles of the story so real that your head just keeps coming back to it. Every time it {…}