Deutsche Oper Berlin 2017-18 Review – La Traviata: Kristina Mkhitaryan’s Outstanding Violetta Gains the Russian Soprano “Prima Donna Assoluta” Status

The Deutsche Oper Berlin has long been a mecca for iconoclast regie theater directors ranging from Hans Neuenfels and Claus Guth to Ole Anders Tandberg, whose recent staging of “Carmen” had more viscera on the stage than verismo. Curiously, the extant production of “La Traviata” by the former Deutsche Oper Intendant Götz Friedrich, dating back to 1999, is surprisingly uncontroversial. In his {…}

Jun 1, 2018

Carnegie Hall 2017-18 Review: Baritones Launch “Remember” Album with Powerful Performance

On May 22, 2018, Roven Records celebrated the release of its newest album, “Remember,” with a recital and launch party at Carnegie Hall. The album features work from composers such as Benjamin C.S. Boyle, Jake Heggie, Jennifer Higdon, Lori Laitman, and Glen Roven; all performed by some of opera’s most promising young baritones. In describing what makes the baritone voice {…}

May 30, 2018

Los Angeles Opera 2017-18 Review – Rigoletto: Adela Zaharia Makes Triumphant Debut Alongside Michael Fabiano & Ambrogio Maestri

On Sunday, May 27, 2018, Los Angeles Opera presented Giuseppe Verdi’s “Rigoletto” with a new cast of singers that was equal to those who sang the premiere. For this unusual situation, I found it necessary to return to the City of Angels for another look. Having attended a matinee performance, I write about it as our car speeds eastward away {…}

May 29, 2018

Center for Contemporary Opera 2018 Review: Pascal Dusapin’s “To Be Sung” and Stein’s Intimate Love Affair

“To Be Sung” was written in 1997 as Pascal Dusapin’s third opera. Set to Gertrude Stein’s text extracts from “A Lyrical Opera Made By Two,” Dusapin illuminated Stein’s modernist writing style and created a unique synergy between her intimate story and textual sound. The Center for Contemporary Opera recently presented this impactful opera under the direction of Jorinde Keesmaat, who created {…}

May 28, 2018

Amore Opera 2017-18 Review: La Traviata – Jennifer Gliere Enchants as Life, and Death, of the Party

This review is for the performance on Saturday, May 26, 2018. Within the intimate space of the Riverside Theatre, Amore Opera’s production of “La Traviata” brought to the surface comedic moments hidden within Francesco Maria Piave’s libretto. While this work is not one I normally would expect humor from, this approach added to the emotional investment in the audience, as {…}

May 27, 2018

Vienna State Opera 2017-18 Review – La Traviata: Not Even Plácido Domingo Can Save Jean-François Sivadier’s Misguided Production

It is not too difficult to stage Verdi’s ever-popular tear-jerker “La Traviata.” Francesco Maria Piave’s libretto and stage directions are so detailed any director with access to a few lengths of velvet and some stock chandeliers can create a plausible mis-en-scène to serve Verdi’s marvelous, emotive music. French director Jean-François Sivadier, whose operatic resumé is shorter than a Rossini semiquaver, {…}

May 26, 2018

Vienna State Opera 2017-18 Review – Capriccio: A Win for the Words When Music Misses The Mark

Of Richard Strauss’ 15 completed operas, his last opus “Capriccio” is arguably the most abstruse. For a start, it isn’t even called an opera but a “Conversation Piece for Music.” Many Strauss scholars are baffled by this highly cerebral, seemingly escapist bagatelle composed in the midst of the mayhem of World War II. It was as if Strauss and librettist {…}

May 23, 2018

Tiroler Landestheater 2018 Review – Rienzi: While Uneven Musically, Johannes Reitmeier Presents Timely & Relevant Interpretation of Neglected Wagner Work

Strange as it may now seem, but during Wagner’s own lifetime, and well into the early 20th century, “Rienzi” was one of his most oft performed works, knocking up over 200 performances by 1908 in Dresden alone, the city in which it was premiered. Nowadays, no doubt, owing in part to Wagner’s own reservations about the work, it has become {…}