Last night I was reminded of what happens when opera is done right – very right. The opening performance of Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Rigoletto was a masterfully executed, well-rounded tour de force. First and foremost, the vocal performances in Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Rigoletto were world-class. Leading the cast were Evanston Read more…
The Metropolitan Opera’s latest production of Don Giovanni was about as traditional as it gets, but that’s just fine when the music is as exceptional as Mozart’s and the words as witty as Da Ponte’s.
Near the end of Act I, from the Met’s website
The Met’s second installment of its Live in HD program took place on Saturday afternoon, October 22, 2016. The opera was Don Giovanni, the product of the second of three Da Ponte – Mozart collaborations (the first was Le Nozze di Figaro, written a year before Giovanni, in 1786, and the third was Così fan tutte, which premiered in 1790, a year before the composer’s death). The work is arguably the pinnacle of Mozart’s ability to depict characters in music, and it has provided fodder for critics, philosophers, musicians, and other artists ceaselessly for nearly 230 years.
Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde marked my first experience watching one of the Met’s Live in HD productions, and I’m afraid it may be difficult to return to the stage theater to watch opera having experienced it. The six or so of us in attendance sat in reclining chairs like these:
I enjoyed the Minnesota Opera’s production immensely, but Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette (Romeo and Juliet) is not one of my favorite operas. Sitting in the front row of the Ordway on Sunday afternoon, October 2, 2016, I watched both actors and maestro have their respective moments of glory, of which Read more…
