Humbled and Overwhelmed

Disclaimer: The following is a purely fictional recreation of what Richard Nixon and the Berlin Wall might have thought about tonight's performance of I Puritani. The views expressed by the Nixon, Ehrlichman, and Haldeman do not reflect the views of the blog-owner.  April 30, 2014, 12:46 AM, Air Force One: Richard Nixon (R.N.) : Well, Bob, John, I have to say, tonight, we really pulled it off. This will get the goddamned liberal media off our backs for good. H.R. "Bob" Haldeman : Yes, sir, it certainly will. A great night for the presidency, yes, sir. John Ehrlichman : Yes, it will please all those liberals for sure. R.N .: To do what we did, you know, have a (inaudible) Soviet soprano, onstage, singing with an, an Afro-American tenor, and a Polack baritone, that's just, the New York Times never would have thought Richard Nixon could pull that off. And for the President of the United States to stand on that stage, and present the opera, it's like if ...

During tonight's absolutely amazing Cenerentola Javier Camarena finished "Pegno adorato e caro" with a long-held D followed by an even longer high C, the audience predictably started screaming, just like opening night. This time though, after it was clear the ovation would not stop, Camarena ran back onstage to acknowledge the applause. And then ... an encore!!! Yes it was planned because the chorus also ran back onstage and Luisi immediately cued the band, but he deserved it. You could see the joy on his face as he held an even longer D and C. This is a guy who just has to open his mouth and the audience is already screaming. Yes, I think it's safe to say ... Javier Camarena is ready for his close-up. p.s. And the rest of the cast was also much improved from opening night, if that's even possible. But they were much more relaxed with the comedy, Luca Pisaroni sounded GREAT (as opposed to opening night, when he sounded ... ), and Corbelli and Spagnoli abso...

To the left is a picture of Gioachino Rossini that I think reflects a bit on the man and his music. Behind the dark shadows and serious poses of 19th century photographs, you can see a sparkle in his eyes and a small but definite smile. Rossini's music, even his serious music, never loses that certain sparkle and joy, and the challenge for casting his operas has always been finding singers that can match the Italian master's spirit.

I attended the premiere of I Puritani last night at the Met. My review can again, be found at  parterre box.  Overall I don't think it's a must-see for the season.

Last night I had the privilege of attending the remarkable Butterfly of Kristine Opolais. My review is at  parterre box . An amazing singer and performer.

VAI has released an absolutely essential DVD for all ballet and dance lovers -- vintage performances of two of Balanchine's most important works, Orpheus and Serenade , danced by Balanchine's legendary "first generation" of New York City Ballet dancers. These films were made in 1957 ( Serenade ) and 1960 ( Orpheus ) but the first thing you notice is how absolutely no caveat needs to be made about when these films were made. The dancers and move in a completely modern manner. When Balanchine was alive there was criticism that he preferred "pinheads" -- tall, thin women with small sleek heads. A cursory view of both films shows that this was a fallacy. Violette Verdy (Eurydice) had a rather womanly figure, and the corps de ballet of Serenade also shows a sea of unexpected curves.

I walked into the Metropolitan Opera to see the matinee of La Boheme and who do I see but  Joan and Peggy  also walking towards Lincoln Center. Afterwards I followed them to a local bar and recorded their conversation surreptitiously. We all witnessed the historic last-minute substitution of Kristine Opolais, who had just sung in last night's Madama Butterfly . (The scheduled Mimi, Anita Hartig, was ill.) I could say what I thought of the performance but Peggy and Joan's conversation is just so much more interesting.

Mrs. Melanie Wilkes went to the Met's Arabella last night, and offered her thoughts in a letter to her dear sister Scarlett.  Here is her review at Parterre Box.  As you can see, Miss Melanie did not enjoy the performance.