This is for the performance on Feb. 11, 2023. The posters are all over Paris: Gluck’s “Orphée et Eurydice” is premiering at Thêatre l’Athénée. The announcement is somewhat tempered, however, by the ominous qualifier: ‘freely adapted by Othman Louati.’ Even the most enthusiastic contemporary operagoer must raise their eyebrows when the words ‘freely adapted’ appear after Gluck’s name. The ‘freely’ {…}
Photo : Jennifer Taylor Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall was filled with the wondrous sounds of a talented group of young artists in recital, each of whom had taken part in the 2023 SongStudio. The concert was the culmination of a weeklong series of workshops and masterclasses taught by renowned vocalists Golda Schultz, Hartmut Höll (pianist), and Jamie Barton. Under the {…}
(Photo: Michele Crosera) Premiered in Vienna in 1792, Domenico Cimarosa’s “Il Matrimonio Segreto” proved to be one of the century’s most successful operas, quickly establishing itself across Europe with performances in Milan, London, Barcelona, and Lisbon. In fact, such was its initial success, that not even Mozart, with whom Cimarosa is often compared, was able to create an opera that {…}
Photo credit: Michele Monasta There was a lovely old lady, clearly a regular at Maggio, sitting next to me, who, during the change of the scene, quietly asked, “is it an interval already?” “No, another half of an hour,” I replied. She only sighed in response. There was also a stylish man in his 40s, who stood up twice during {…}
Paris Opera’s “Carmen” staging was sold as the same production staged last November, yet everything was different. Adding one or two gestures here and there can almost completely change the characters’ psychology. Calixto Bieito’s staging remains impressive and provocative. He emphasizes the importance of true meaning to the detriment of the exploitation of empty forms. The impact of such a {…}
(Photo: Monika Rittershaus) Elites within society are nothing new. However, over the latter part of the 20th century and the first quarter of the 21st century, we have witnessed the emergence of an increasingly powerful elite who possess significant global interests yet apparently display little attachment to any specific country. It is an elite that is accumulating wealth and income {…}
Photo: Mark Allen A 400th anniversary means a flock of Byrds this year. But few opportunities to hear his music are as intimate or visceral as Bill Barclay’s “Secret Byrd,” an immersive program extremely on trend for classical music right now. The show was devised with the elite vocal group The Gesualdo Six and viol consort Fretwork and received four {…}
Opera de Oviedo closed his 75th season with a period production of Verdi’s “Ernani,” which included a strong cast of singers and the expert baton of the Italian conductor Daniele Callegari. The Italian stage director Giorgia Guerra did an homage to old-school opera. She staged the opera with painted canvas, cardboard arches, pillars, and curtains, as it probably would’ve been {…}
Peter Brook, in his book “Empty Stage,” once commented on the impossible equation that is theater, especially opera: “At the Metropolitan Opera in New York in a brand-new building the best of Europe’s singers under the baton of the best Mozart conductor, and organized by the best producer, play a “Magic Flute.” […] The [opera] ticket is ‘hot’—but what is {…}