Thursday, October 30, 2008
The New York opera season starts with a bang
For some reason this summer, while on my job search, I had the foresight to realize that I may have a new job that required a lot of travel and changed my season ticket from a Tuesday to a Friday night.
The season got started last month with Mary and me going to opening night. It seemed like we were planning it for ages. (I was hyping up the event for quite some time, to be honest.)
Despite some work drama, I made it over to the Metropolitan Opera to meet Mary. She was looking divine in her black dress and we had a glass of wine and walked over to the Met. The evening was a Renee Fleming gorge. She sang an act of Manon, La Traviata and the final scene from Capriccio. She was, as usually, fantastic, and decked out in dresses the Met commissioned for her.
The opera season continued with the soprano, Kraita Mattila reprising her performance of Salome. If opening night was glamorous and fun, Salome was electrifying, intense and an artistic triumph. Walking into the auditorium, we were taken by the painting on the curtain of angels sitting on blood-tinged clouds looked down from the heaven in horror. We knew we were in for something intense.
Matilla turned to score into a mix of twisted emotions which came to a sordid climax during the final scene, after being delivered the head of John the Baptist. She sang a hurricane of music, emotion, twisted sexuality, and even pathos. Kissing the head, she sings “you may have loved me.” So deranged was this scene that her stepfather turns to the executioner and says “kill that woman” after which point a hysterical Salome inched toward the orchestra pit while the executioner draws his machete. Then the curtain closed. It was one of the most enthusiastic ovations I’d ever heard at the Met.
In the spring, Michael and I met Deborah Voigt, the world’s leading dramatic soprano, at Carnegie Hall after she sang the final scene there and I asked when she would bring it to the Met. Apparently they said “no.” After this performance I can see why.
Then it was off to Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” which was marvelous. At the end of the day, there is Mozart and everyone else. The Met had a great cast. Next on the hit parade was the vocal perfection of "Luci di Lammernor" with Damaru as Lucia, another crazed woman, singing the role to no end.
After that it’s time for the Met’s georgous production of Madama Butterfly. As the reader(s?) of this blog know, seeing this is production was one of my great moments at the Met. I can’t wait to see it again.
So the opera season in New York has started with a BANG. I would doubt there is better theater in the Western Hemisphere than what’s going on at the Met these days. If you’re not in New York, you should see these performances in theaters. Watch the Met’s HD broadcasts live.
The season got started last month with Mary and me going to opening night. It seemed like we were planning it for ages. (I was hyping up the event for quite some time, to be honest.)
Despite some work drama, I made it over to the Metropolitan Opera to meet Mary. She was looking divine in her black dress and we had a glass of wine and walked over to the Met. The evening was a Renee Fleming gorge. She sang an act of Manon, La Traviata and the final scene from Capriccio. She was, as usually, fantastic, and decked out in dresses the Met commissioned for her.
The opera season continued with the soprano, Kraita Mattila reprising her performance of Salome. If opening night was glamorous and fun, Salome was electrifying, intense and an artistic triumph. Walking into the auditorium, we were taken by the painting on the curtain of angels sitting on blood-tinged clouds looked down from the heaven in horror. We knew we were in for something intense.
Matilla turned to score into a mix of twisted emotions which came to a sordid climax during the final scene, after being delivered the head of John the Baptist. She sang a hurricane of music, emotion, twisted sexuality, and even pathos. Kissing the head, she sings “you may have loved me.” So deranged was this scene that her stepfather turns to the executioner and says “kill that woman” after which point a hysterical Salome inched toward the orchestra pit while the executioner draws his machete. Then the curtain closed. It was one of the most enthusiastic ovations I’d ever heard at the Met.
In the spring, Michael and I met Deborah Voigt, the world’s leading dramatic soprano, at Carnegie Hall after she sang the final scene there and I asked when she would bring it to the Met. Apparently they said “no.” After this performance I can see why.
Then it was off to Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” which was marvelous. At the end of the day, there is Mozart and everyone else. The Met had a great cast. Next on the hit parade was the vocal perfection of "Luci di Lammernor" with Damaru as Lucia, another crazed woman, singing the role to no end.
After that it’s time for the Met’s georgous production of Madama Butterfly. As the reader(s?) of this blog know, seeing this is production was one of my great moments at the Met. I can’t wait to see it again.
So the opera season in New York has started with a BANG. I would doubt there is better theater in the Western Hemisphere than what’s going on at the Met these days. If you’re not in New York, you should see these performances in theaters. Watch the Met’s HD broadcasts live.
# posted by otas : 8:24 PM
