Anthony Roth Costanzo (pictured left, photograph by Ken Howard), who has been singing Ferdinand in the Metropolitan Opera's The Enchanted Island this season, will replace David Daniels as Prospero in tomorrow's performance of that opera. Jeffrey Mandelbaum will in turn replace Costanzo as Ferdinand. Daniels, who is ill, was also replaced for part of the January 12 performance, and all of the January 14 performance.
September 29- October 31 2012: Il Trovatore
October 4- November 3 2012: Die Fledermaus
January 29- February 23 2013: Tristan und Isolde
February 3-22 2013: Clemenza di Tito
April 17- May 24 2013: Lucia di Lammermoor
April 21- May 22 2013: Salome
May 8-25 2013: Dialogues des Carmélites
* Notes *
A sneak preview of Ensemble Parallèle's next production, The Great Gatsby, was held at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music last week. Conductor Nicole Paiement took us through several musical examples with pianist Keisuke Nakogoshi and six of the cast members. Susannah Biller (pictured above as Daisy Buchanan, photograph by Rapt), Jason Detwiler (Nick Carraway), Marco Panuccio (Jay Gatsby), Erin Neff (Myrtle Wilson), Daniel Snyder (Tom Buchannan), and Julienne Walker (Jordan Baker) looked and sounded utterly comfortable, despite the fact that rehearsals had only started the day before.
Jacques Desjardins, who has re-orchestrated John Harbison's work for chamber orchestra, was on hand to speak about the challenges of this undertaking. The number of musicians has been taken from 120 down to 30. The music is brass heavy, and Desjardins has had to use woodwinds to make up for this in the chamber version. The harp part also presented an interesting problem, as the sound of the instrument is so particular.
Director Brian Staufenbiel also gave us a glimpse of the set design and the concepts behind some of the stage elements. His style seems to be stylized rather than descriptive. One does look forward to seeing and hearing the piece. Three performances are presented between Friday, February 10 to Sunday, February 12 at the Novellus Theatre, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
* Tattling *
There was light talking and some electronic noise.
The new logo of Los Angeles Opera is based on the design elements of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. LA Opera did a great deal of marketing research recently and more news will be announced soon.
October 26- November 11 2012: Aïda
April 5-21 2013: Turandot
April 12-28 2013: The Aspern Papers
Only 3 operas next season, down from 6 in 2011-2012. Latonia Moore sings the title role of Aïda, Lise Lindstrom the title role of Turandot, and Susan Graham has her Dallas Opera debut opposite Carol Vaness in Dominick Argento's The Aspern Papers.
October 6-30 2012: Elektra
October 15 - November 9 2012: Simon Boccanegra
November 11-26 2012: Werther
November 25- December 15 2012: Don Pasquale
December 7 2012-January 19 2013: Hansel and Gretel
January 21- March 28 2013: La bohème
February 8- March 3 2013: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
February 25- March 30 2013: Rigoletto
March 26- April 6 2013: A Streetcar Named Desire
Anthony Freud announced Lyric Opera of Chicago's 2012-2013 season yesterday.
September 7-30 2012: Rigoletto
September 29- October 19 2012 I Capuleti e i Montecchi
October 10- November 2 2012: Moby-Dick
October 20- November 9 2012: Lohengrin
November 15- December 2 2012: Tosca
March 1-10 2013: The Secret Garden
June 5- July 6 2013: Les Contes d'Hoffmann
June 9- July 1 2013: Così fan tutte
June 19- July 7 2013: The Gospel of Mary Magdalene
San Francisco Opera's 2012-2013 season includes three contemporary American operas in English. Former Adler Fellow David Lomelí sings the Duke in Rigoletto, Albina Shagimuratova sings Gilda. Joyce DiDonato sings Romeo in I Capuleti e i Montecchi with Nicole Cabell as Giulietta. Ben Heppner and Jay Hunter Morris share the role of Ahab in Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick. Brandon Jovanovich is Lohengrin. Angela Gheorghiu and Patricia Racette share the title role in Tosca. Natalie Dessay stars in Les Contes d'Hoffmann. Nathan Gunn, William Burden, and Sasha Cooke create roles in Mark Adamo's The Gospel of Mary Magdalene.
* Notes *
Mezzo-soprano Susan Graham (pictured left, photograph by Dario Acosta) is in the midst of a recital tour through 8 North American cities, starting in Quebec and ending in Washington, DC. The recitals are accompanied by pianist Malcolm Martineau and program is thematic, "inspired by iconic female characters." Her Berkeley performance last night, presented by Cal Performances, was winsome. The evening began with Purcell's "Tell me, some pitying angel" (The Blessed Virgin's Expostulation). Graham's breathing was rather audible, but her singing was never breathy, and her high notes had a bell-like quality. In the Berlioz that came next, La mort d'Ophélie, her dynamics were clear, her singing smooth. Martineau's accomplished playing was supportive and never overwhemlming. Before the intermission we heard 6 songs based on Goethe's Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre, each from a different composer. One was able to compare Liszt's setting of "Kennst du das Land, wo die Zitronen blühn" with Wolf's. Perhaps most beautiful was "Нет, только тот, кто знал" ("None but the Lonely Heart") by Tchaikovsky. The piece is set to Lev Aleksandrovich Mei's "Песнь Арфиста" ("Harpist's Song"), based on Goethe's "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt."
The second half of the show started again with a song in English, Joseph Horowitz's Lady Macbeth, with a text adapted from Shakespeare. Hearing the familiar words sung was chilling, and Graham delivered the words clearly. Poulenc's Fiançailles pour rire, 6 songs based on poems by Louise de Vilmorin, were similarly dark, but, at times, more humorous. The last three songs of the program were announced from the stage, the "spontaneous" part of the recital, as Graham explained. She went on to say that the first songs had been about good girls, and the second set about bad ones, "ladies of a questionable moral compass." She sang Messager's "J'ai deux amants," first asking the audience for a translation of the title, and noting it was "I have two lovers, not I have two almonds." Graham followed this with Cole Porter's "The Physician" from Nymph Errant, which was jaunty and rather funny. Even more amusing was the Ben Moore song written for Graham, "Sexy Lady," in which she pokes fun at her repertoire, including her many trouser roles. There was much merriment, and Martineau played the Mozart, Strauss, and Händel references with exuberance.
The three encores were "Connais-tu le pays" by Thomas, "The Boy from..." by Sondheim, and "À Chloris" by Hahn. Graham made the most of the tongue twisting place names in the Sondheim, whether fictional or otherwise.
* Tattling *
The audience was fairly quiet, some light murmuring was noted, but no electronic noise. The woman in Row L Seat 11 whispered a few times to her companion in Seat 13. After intermission they moved over toward the center. A man in Row K, who happened to be in front of this couple after they switched seats, put on his sweater during the last encore. This incited the woman to complain fiercely (but at least quietly and only for a moment), as he was blocking her view.
October 12-28 2012: La Bohème
November 1-9 2012: The Pirates of Penzance
January 9-17 2013: The Magic Flute
May 4-11 2013: Tea: A Mirror of Soul
Vancouver Opera announced the 2012-2013 season on Thursday.
January 24 & 28: The Magic Flute
February 28 & March 3: Otello
March 27 & 31: Salome
May 15 & 19: Il Trittico
Sundance Kabuki Cinemas
1881 Post Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
The Sundance Kabuki Cinemas will screen San Francisco Opera productions on certain Tuesdays at 7:00 pm and Saturdays at 10:30 am.
Today Washington National Opera announced a plethora of new initiatives, including the presentation of WNO Artistic Advisor Francesca Zambello's "American Ring" in 2016, a New American Works Project to promote young American composers and librettists, a holiday opera each season, performances at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater, a new production each season, and one production per season directed by Zambello.
Marcelo Álvarez, who is singing Radamès in the Metropolitan Opera's Aida this season, has withdrawn from the final three performances of the run as he is obliged to return to Europe for eye surgery. Riccardo Massì will replace Álvarez on February 23, and Marcello Giordani will sing Radamès on February 28 and March 3. Roberto De Biasio will replace Giordani as Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly on March 2.
In other Met tenor news, Roberto Alagna will sing the title role in Gounod's Faust this evening, January 9, replacing Joseph Calleja, who is ill.
August 4-18 2012: Turandot
October 13-27 2012: Fidelio
January 12-26 2013: La Cenerentola
February 23- March 9 2013: La Bohème
May 4-18 2013: La Voix Humaine and Suor Angelica
Seattle Opera announced the 2012-2013 season today. Noticed that one of the Bohème casts has Nadine Sierra and Michael Fabiano as Mimì and Rodolfo.