Parterre Box https://parterre.com/ Opera from a certain point of view Wed, 08 Jul 2026 19:08:28 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.1 https://parterre.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/cropped-pb-favicon-02-32x32.png Parterre Box https://parterre.com/ 32 32 Seiji Ozawa was a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/10/seiji-ozawa-was-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/10/seiji-ozawa-was-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2026 10:00:08 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108228 Seiji Ozawa in 1972 when I was 12 years old.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/10/seiji-ozawa-was-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 1 108228<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sakakeeny_NJP.jpg">WilhelmHeckel</a>, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons Box Braid https://parterre.com/2026/07/09/box-braid/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/09/box-braid/#comments Thu, 09 Jul 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107950 Ambur Braid's biggest dramatic soprano assignment yet — the Dyer's Wife in Aix — is occasion for Parterre Box to feature her in some of her old repertoire.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/09/box-braid/feed/ 5 107950Photo: Jean-Louis Fernandez Fausto Cleva was a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/09/fausto-cleva-was-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/09/fausto-cleva-was-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Thu, 09 Jul 2026 10:00:29 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108103 Fausto Cleva, in this glorious Fanciulla from the old Met, demonstrates all the great skills of opera conducting]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/09/fausto-cleva-was-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 32 108103 His mouth is always scandalous https://parterre.com/2026/07/08/his-mouth-is-always-scandalous/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/08/his-mouth-is-always-scandalous/#comments Wed, 08 Jul 2026 13:00:03 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108259 Tosca at La Monnaie does not quite find the pleasure in the pain.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/08/his-mouth-is-always-scandalous/feed/ 31 108259Photo: Pieter Claes Aix and you shall receive https://parterre.com/2026/07/07/aix-and-you-shall-receive/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/07/aix-and-you-shall-receive/#comments Tue, 07 Jul 2026 13:00:32 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108073 https://parterre.com/2026/07/07/aix-and-you-shall-receive/feed/ 37 108073PC: Festival d'Aix-en-Provence Giuseppe Patanè was a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/07/giuseppe-patane-was-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/07/giuseppe-patane-was-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Tue, 07 Jul 2026 10:00:04 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108084 Patanè did far more than just hold it together: he did full honor to Verdi.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/07/giuseppe-patane-was-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 26 108084 Rafael Kubelik was a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/05/raphael-kubelik-was-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/05/raphael-kubelik-was-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Sun, 05 Jul 2026 10:00:38 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108081 https://parterre.com/2026/07/05/raphael-kubelik-was-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 70 108081 Herbert von Karajan was a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/04/herbert-von-karajan-was-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/04/herbert-von-karajan-was-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Sat, 04 Jul 2026 10:00:45 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108118 https://parterre.com/2026/07/04/herbert-von-karajan-was-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 136 108118 Ernest Ansermet was a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/03/ernest-ansermet-was-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/03/ernest-ansermet-was-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Fri, 03 Jul 2026 10:00:07 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108078 Ernest Ansermet is most often associated with orchestral music, his 1964 recording of Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande is still my favorite.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/03/ernest-ansermet-was-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 68 108078 Extravagant minimalism https://parterre.com/2026/07/02/extravagant-minimalism/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/02/extravagant-minimalism/#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:00:50 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108214 Die Frau ohne Schatten, Barrie Kosky chats with Kevin Ng in Aix about pretty much everything — except the details of his new Frau.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/02/extravagant-minimalism/feed/ 34 108214Director Barrie Kosky / Jan Windszus Beyond the valley of the gods https://parterre.com/2026/07/02/beyond-the-valley-of-the-gods/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/02/beyond-the-valley-of-the-gods/#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:00:03 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108199 Bayerische Staatsoper’s Ring cycle scores another triumph with Tobias Kratzer’s take on Die Walküre.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/02/beyond-the-valley-of-the-gods/feed/ 8 108199Photo: Monika Rittershaus Aegean in place https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/aegean-in-place/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/aegean-in-place/#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 13:00:50 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108200 Medea in the ancient theater at Epidaurus is an intermittently rewarding exercise in nostalgia.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/aegean-in-place/feed/ 23 108200Anna Pirozzi in Medea at the ancient theater at Epidaurus AFP Photo Ma queer immortelle https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/ma-queer-immortelle/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/ma-queer-immortelle/#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 13:00:21 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108196 San Francisco Opera hosts an exuberant tribute to queerness past and present.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/ma-queer-immortelle/feed/ 14 108196Photo: Cory Weaver Yannick Nézet-Séguin is a great opera conductor https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/yannick-nezet-seguin-is-a-great-opera-conductor/ https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/yannick-nezet-seguin-is-a-great-opera-conductor/#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 10:00:59 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108075 Yannick Nézet-Séguin completely subverts this stereotype.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/07/01/yannick-nezet-seguin-is-a-great-opera-conductor/feed/ 154 108075Photo: Chris Lee Goodnight, Irene https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/goodnight-irene/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/goodnight-irene/#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2026 13:00:14 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107934 Irene Roberts ahead of an eclectic season of Wagner.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/goodnight-irene/feed/ 8 107934Irene Roberts as Kundry in PArsifal at the Bayerische Staatsoper, March 2024 / Photo: W. Hösl Queening out https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/queening-out/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/queening-out/#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108177 Brett Dean's Of One Blood casts a well-trodden Tudor tale in a poignant, new light.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/queening-out/feed/ 7 108177Photo: Monica Rittershaus Patrizia Ciofi should have made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/patrizia-ciofi-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/patrizia-ciofi-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2026 10:00:37 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107923 Patrizia Ciofi.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/30/patrizia-ciofi-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 101 107923Deutsche Oper Berlin Giannina Arangi-Lombardi never made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/29/giannina-arangi-lombardi-never-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/29/giannina-arangi-lombardi-never-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2026 10:00:41 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107797 Giannina Arangi-Lombardi never sang at the Met.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/29/giannina-arangi-lombardi-never-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 47 107797 Et O ces voix d’enfants https://parterre.com/2026/06/27/et-o-ces-voix-denfants/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/27/et-o-ces-voix-denfants/#comments Sat, 27 Jun 2026 13:00:36 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108061 Brundibár at the Opéra Comique combines whimsy with historicity to sobering effect.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/27/et-o-ces-voix-denfants/feed/ 2 108061Photo: Stefan Brion Andrée Esposito and Alain Vanzo should have made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/27/andree-esposito-and-alain-vanzo-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/27/andree-esposito-and-alain-vanzo-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Sat, 27 Jun 2026 10:00:42 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107794 Mireille duet unites Andrée Esposito and Alain Vanzo and shows the timbral and stylistic qualities that made them exemplary.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/27/andree-esposito-and-alain-vanzo-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 153 107794 A little tenderness https://parterre.com/2026/06/26/a-little-tenderness/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/26/a-little-tenderness/#comments Fri, 26 Jun 2026 13:00:27 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108050 What Belongs to You reveals a work of both tenderness and artistic tenacity.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/26/a-little-tenderness/feed/ 1 108050Photo: Jay Mather There are no dead https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/there-are-no-dead/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/there-are-no-dead/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2026 13:00:45 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108056 James McCourt, an author who captured the spirit of opera as queer and dangerous like no other.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/there-are-no-dead/feed/ 16 108056A portion of the cover of Mawrdew Czgowchwz by James McCourt Mahler if ya hear me https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/mahler-if-ya-hear-me/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/mahler-if-ya-hear-me/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2026 13:00:40 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108062 https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/mahler-if-ya-hear-me/feed/ 10 108062The Met Orchestra with Yannick Nezet Seguin and Joyce DiDonato. Photo: Jennifer Taylor Ebe Stignani and Anita Cerquetti should have made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/ebe-stignani-and-anita-cerquetti-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/ebe-stignani-and-anita-cerquetti-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2026 10:00:15 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107791 Anita Cerquetti and the blaring Ebe Stignani.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/25/ebe-stignani-and-anita-cerquetti-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 165 107791 Poetic license https://parterre.com/2026/06/24/poetic-license/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/24/poetic-license/#comments Wed, 24 Jun 2026 13:00:18 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107800 Parterre Box shines a light on Liparit Avetisyan, who made his Met debut as Alfredo earlier this spring.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/24/poetic-license/feed/ 7 107800Liparit Avetisyan in Eugene Onegin at the Royal Ballet and Opera, 2024 / Photo: Tristram Kenton/RBO Fifty percent illusion https://parterre.com/2026/06/23/fifty-percent-illusion/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/23/fifty-percent-illusion/#comments Tue, 23 Jun 2026 13:00:28 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108043 Opera Theatre of Saint Louis does its best to give magic in its summer productions of Roméo et Juliette and A Streetcar Named Desired. ]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/23/fifty-percent-illusion/feed/ 37 108043Photo: Eric Woolsey Sena Jurinac should have made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/23/sena-jurinac-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/23/sena-jurinac-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Tue, 23 Jun 2026 10:00:53 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107788 Sena Jurinac, a celebrated Mozart and Strauss singer here as the Composer, a signature role.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/23/sena-jurinac-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 123 107788 Janet Baker should have made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/22/janet-baker-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/22/janet-baker-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Mon, 22 Jun 2026 10:00:19 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107785 Janet Baker never sang at the Metropolitan, sadly for American audiences.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/22/janet-baker-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 87 107785 Super rich kids https://parterre.com/2026/06/21/super-rich-kids/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/21/super-rich-kids/#comments Sun, 21 Jun 2026 13:00:08 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=108004 Wolf Trap Opera triumphs in a fizzy, fun Cenerentola.]]> https://parterre.com/2026/06/21/super-rich-kids/feed/ 7 108004 Dorothy Maynor should have made it to the Met https://parterre.com/2026/06/21/dorothy-maynor-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/ https://parterre.com/2026/06/21/dorothy-maynor-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/#comments Sun, 21 Jun 2026 10:00:57 +0000 https://parterre.com/?p=107783 https://parterre.com/2026/06/21/dorothy-maynor-should-have-made-it-to-the-met/feed/ 29 107783