By 1825, as Rossini’s operatic vein was approaching exhaustion, the
Neapolitan Saverio Mercadante ranked as a front-runner for his succession
alongside Bellini and Donizetti; much more so, however, in the field of serious
drama than in opera buffa.
Category: Performances
Scenes from Two Marriages
Juan, a film by Kaspar Holten
I recently got the chance to see Juan, the Kaspar Holten film version of Mozart’s Don Giovanni, at the Seattle International Film Festival.
Der Ring des Nibelungen in San Francisco
Some of the experts said it was the best Ring ever, others merely
said it was one of the best (these were lecturers at a Wagner Society
symposium).
Summer Treats in Saint Louis
Opera Theatre of St. Louis has demonstrated yet again that it is an indispensable summer festival to be counted on for adventurous programming, thought-provoking productions, and exciting talent discoveries.
Sensitive, intelligent Madama Butterfly, Royal Opera
This Madama Butterfly at the Royal Opera House, London, brings out
the depth and intelligence of the human story Puccini might be trying to tell
us, beneath the surface gloss.
Two Boys, ENO
You would have had to be deaf and blind — or perhaps just a very wise
monkey — not to have been aware that a young American composer called
Nico Muhly was about to open at the English National Opera in London last night
with a work called Two Boys.
Viva Vivaldi — Garsington Opera 2011
Garsington Opera — in its superb new home on the Wormsley estate in
rural Oxfordshire — has yet again confirmed the merit of its decision to
promote Vivaldi’s long-ignored operas.
The Cunning Little Vixen, New York
One of Richard Wagner’s most enduring contributions to music history is a concept known as gesamtkunstwerk.
Peter Grimes, Covent Garden
Willy Decker’s production of Peter Grimes, first seen at
Covent Garden in 2004, should perhaps be renamed The Borough.