Another big season at the Metropolitan Opera has come and gone. The 2018-19 was a rather fascinating one from a repertory perspective, offering up a wide range of music from some of the greatest composers. The year wound up being a mixed bag of sorts from a quality standpoint with the best performances arguably taking place once the calendar turned {…}
The Met Opera’s highly successful production of “Adriana Lecouvreur” will be showcased on PBS as part of the Great Performances at the Met. The broadcast is set for May 12 at 12 p.m. Anna Netrebko and Anita Rachvelishvili will headline the production as warring divas over the affection of Piotr Beczala’s Maurizio. Ambrogio Maestri rounds out the quartet with the {…}
The Metropolitan Opera completed its run of “Adriana Lecouvreur” on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019. This opera had already been experienced and reviewed by OperaWire earlier in the run, but the high quality of this showcase was so great, that it felt worthwhile to check it out again, albeit with a major casting switch. Stronger Than Ever Those who had appeared {…}
The Met Opera will continue its Live in HD series this Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019 with a performance of Cilea’s “Adriana Lecouvreur.” The broadcast, which kicks off 12:55 p.m. Eastern time, will showcase star soprano Anna Netrebko in the title role; this is the second HD transmission for the diva. This will be the Russian diva’s 15th Live in HD broadcast; {…}
This review is for the performance on Jan. 4, 2019. They say three times is a charm but in the case of the Metropolitan Opera, it took four tries to finally put on a production worthy of its legendary stature in the opera world. After three lackluster new productions, the company has finally hit a high note with Sir David McVicar’s 2010 {…}
After the holidays, it is unsurprising that few opera companies will be in action. Yet there are still a few that are willing to bet on audiences wanting opera right away after the break. Metropolitan Opera The company that never sleeps, literally never stopped performing throughout the holidays, continuing its offerings the night and day after Christmas and showcasing its {…}
The Metropolitan Opera is set to celebrate New Year’s Eve with a star-studded cast of “Adriana Lecouvreur” and talk has been about the diva and the tenor. But there is one artist in the cast that can’t be overlooked in the least – Anita Rachvelishvili. These performances of the Princess de Bouillon will be special because they will feature the {…}
On Dec. 31, 2018, the Metropolitan Opera will celebrate the New Year’s with a new production of Cilea’s “Adriana Lecouvreur,” with the opera making a return for the first time since 2009. This time, Sir David McVicar will bring his acclaimed production from the Royal Opera House with Anna Netrebko and Piotr Beczala. The duo will reunite at the Met for {…}
Newsday once described Aprile Millo as “the high priestess of that old time operatic religion.” Indeed, Millo is still one of the few remaining divas of the past who continues to thrill audiences with her passionate and intense voice and whose sheer honesty continues to bring audiences back to a different time in the opera chronology. A huge exponent of {…}
Francesco Cilea, born on July 23, 1866, is yet another Italian composer of the Verismo era that is known today for one major work. He was born in Palmi and was destined for a musical career from the moment he heard “Norma” at the age of four. He studied at the Conservatorio di San Pietro a Majella, earning a gold {…}
Aprile Millo will return to the opera stage in October. The veteran soprano announced via Instagram that she will sing the title role of “Adriana Lecouvreur” at the Teatro Municpal in Rio di Janeiro. The soprano recently returned to the stage last summer in Italy and has since been performing all over the world. Millo first performed the role of {…}