Here's the Met's program for the next week. Some brilliant productions and some operas I bet you don't know. And yes! the hoped-for encore performance of their at-home gala - coming up next weekend our time.
I've changed dates to our time.
Absolutely the gem of the week is on Thursday, June 11th - Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel. Here's a wonderful bit of escapism for you with gorgeous music and a fine wit - and sharp edge. 'Grimmer than you can imagine' says a rave review.
Opera Group watched the crazy Zurich production inspired by Roald Dahl's "Where the Wild Things Are". Here's our blog then with illustrations. The Met has excelled itself, and emphasized the sharp edge - interesting discussion of their later performance of this production here.
The production showed a balance of the hard story with a wonderful (rare) light touch, if you can go by the trailer - listen here. No, it's not all light - NYTimes review here and Tommasini's review here. Maybe not for children, but then we can't watch with our grandkids right now. And it ends well.
Here's the final act.- Take heart in these strange times: 'when in need or dark despair' there's great music. Yes, it's in English, even (but subtitles for the hard of hearing).
The rest of the week is pretty good too.
Tuesday, June 9 Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito Starring Lucy Crowe, Barbara Frittoli, Elīna Garanča, Kate Lindsey, and Giuseppe Filianoti, conducted by Harry Bicket. From December 1, 2012.
It's a Mozart opera that most of us have never seen (or even heard of!) This was his last work, and has been largely ignored, but reviews of that 2012 performance identified it as a long neglected Mozart gem. (They couldn't be happier about the recent 2019 Met production with Joyce di Donato .) Here's an interesting piece from NYTimes. And more here about the comeback of the opera.... Admitting my ignorance of this opera, I realised I do know the exquisite music he gave Sesto - it's one of Joyce diDonato's prize roles - so for your daily fix of Mozart listen in...
Wednesday, June 10 Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta and Bartók’s Bluebeard's Castle Starring Anna Netrebko and Piotr Beczała in Iolanta, and Nadja Michael and Mikhail Petrenko in Bluebeard's Castle, conducted by Valery Gergiev. From February 14, 2015.
Dark and bleak with some great music - NYTimes review here.
Thursday, June 11 Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel
Starring Christine Schäfer, Alice Coote, Rosalind Plowright, Philip Langridge, and Alan Held, conducted by Vladimir Jurowski. From January 1, 2008.
Friday, June 12 John Corigliano’s The Ghosts of Versailles
This is a must if you want something different. Watch for the crazy plot and some splendid music. -watch for great singers of reknown - it's 1992 and look at the cast list. The Met explanation is here. The place of this crazy opera in history is discussed here. It's a mix of historical characters from the French Revolution and the Figaro/Almaviva story (in an opera within theopera, including apparently the Countess having a child by Cherubino!)
And the music? Modern, and also somewhere between Mozart and Rossini. It made a stir. Starring Teresa Stratas, Renée Fleming, Marilyn Horne, Graham Clark, Gino Quilico, and Håkan Hagegård, conducted by James Levine. From 1992. Marilyn Horne is Samira the Turkish Entertainer - don't ask me, just watch it! A clip here to entice you.
Saturday, June 13 and Sunday, June 13
At-Home Gala (Encore Presentation) If you missed it, here's your chance - it was great!! The Met is doing a two-day encore of their At-Home Gala (pictured), originally presented live on April 25. A virtual event that gave some super performances and insights into the lives and settings of 40 of their stars—and of the Met Orchestra and Chorus—performing from their homes around the globe. It also gave us a chance to get to know Yannick Nézet-Séguin, their music director, now very at-home at the Met - here's their 'Va pensiero' from Nabucco. And the Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana. Lots of fun on this gala too. That's Roberto Alagna and his wife (top middle pic) goofing up the ridiculous duet from Elixir of Love. (Here it is on YouTube)
Lyn, 5 June.
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