San Francisco and Naples have much in common these days — streets with potholes, ever more gourmet pizzerias, homeless, etc., and, yes, Nicola Luisotti.
Year: 2013
Il Trovatore at Arizona Opera
Giuseppe Verdi and his librettist, Salvatore Cammarano, based the opera on Antonio GarcÌa GutiÈrrez’s Spanish play El Trovador.
George Benjamin: Written on Skin
George Benjamin’s Written on Skin sinks deeply into the psyche. A Protector wants brightly coloured images to display his power and wealth.
Barber by ENO
ENO’s advertising emphasises the ‘25th anniversary year’ of Jonathan Miller’s staging of The Barber of Seville. It holds the stage well enough without offering any especial insight — at least by now.
Wagner Parsifal at the Met
This prioduction of Wagner’s Parsifal, directed by FranÁois Girard, premiered in Lyons last year. The Met, being a far wealthier house, was able to assemble a truly spectacular cast: Jonas Kaufmann, RenÈ Pape, Katarina Dalayman, Peter Mattei and Evgeny Nikitin. Success guaranteed, even if the production is European and modern. These performances set new benchmarks. This Parsifal will be the stuff of legend for decades to come.
Tosca, Royal Opera
Puccini’s “shabby little shocker”, to quote Kerman, does not invite subtlety. For those who feel that opera — a hybrid art form encompassing all the arts and embracing all of life and love, transfiguration and tragedy — is ideally suited to depicting the excesses of human ecstasy and suffering, Tosca epitomises the immoderations of the genre.
Bernarda Fink and the Italian Baroque
Argentinean mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink continued her series residency at the Wigmore Hall with an unusual programme of Italian baroque works, partnered by the Academy of Ancient Music, led by violinist Rodolfo Richter.
Bel Canto Queen Jessica Pratt
When the soprano Jessica Pratt first arrived in Italy, she had yet to learn the language or sing in a staged opera.
An Interview with Virginia Zeani
Palm Beach audiences are famous for their glamour, but in recent years a special star has sparkled amid the jewels, sequins, feathers and furs (whatever the weather).