Any opera lovers here?
- Thread starter rajah
- Start date
Ahhh, opera devotees - one of my biggest turn-ons! I cannot wait for the Met's production of Salome this year with Karita Matilla - her performance in Paris this Fall received rave reviews.
Speaking of Scandinavia, does anyone know where I might obtain a video of Constance Haumann's Lulu in Copenhagen (1996, I believe, or maybe '98)? An extremely well-received event, yet an elusive find on video or CD.
I don't think this thread is too far off topic - after all, most operas are laced with sexual themes. Besides, nudity and graphic sexual content seem to be de rigeur in the opera house these days...
Speaking of Scandinavia, does anyone know where I might obtain a video of Constance Haumann's Lulu in Copenhagen (1996, I believe, or maybe '98)? An extremely well-received event, yet an elusive find on video or CD.
I don't think this thread is too far off topic - after all, most operas are laced with sexual themes. Besides, nudity and graphic sexual content seem to be de rigeur in the opera house these days...
Not that it would have helped you if you were living in Atlanta, but that production was supposed to come to BAM but it NEVER FUCKING DID.
Note to hvb --
(Now I can do this: ) Because numerological concerns caused Schoenberg to want to have a certain number of letters in the title, it's "Aron" not "Aaron".
I like that opera a lot and like the current Met production a lot.* (To hear the Met Orchestra play that music -- and the Met Chorus sing it -- is a wonderful experience.) Except for the dance around the Golden Calf, which is stupid Met choreography at its stupidest. It looks like the gym scene in West Side Story.
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* PandoraJezebella should note, however, that in the Met production, unlike the City Opera of 10 years or so ago, the Virgins aren't naked. (You could hardly beg a ticket to that City Opera production.)
Note to hvb --
(Now I can do this: ) Because numerological concerns caused Schoenberg to want to have a certain number of letters in the title, it's "Aron" not "Aaron".
I like that opera a lot and like the current Met production a lot.* (To hear the Met Orchestra play that music -- and the Met Chorus sing it -- is a wonderful experience.) Except for the dance around the Golden Calf, which is stupid Met choreography at its stupidest. It looks like the gym scene in West Side Story.
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* PandoraJezebella should note, however, that in the Met production, unlike the City Opera of 10 years or so ago, the Virgins aren't naked. (You could hardly beg a ticket to that City Opera production.)
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Ah yes, I remember it well - an impressionable adolescent whose godfather was a member of the Met Opera guild, only venturing into the City Opera world because we had not yet seen "Moses and Aaron." If I remember correctly, that was quite a lengthy scene with quite a few dancers. I think the NYC Opera and its sister across the pond (ENO) find a way to incorporate sex and nudity into every production. After all, ENO produced Don Giovanni in the setting of a drug-induced orgy. Need I say more?
On the other hand, the ENO production of Lulu a couple of years ago with Lisa Saffer was truly brilliant - it's where I first fell in love with that opera. I would have travelled to see the BAM production, jl. Atlanta is quite the wilderness as far as opera goes...
On the other hand, the ENO production of Lulu a couple of years ago with Lisa Saffer was truly brilliant - it's where I first fell in love with that opera. I would have travelled to see the BAM production, jl. Atlanta is quite the wilderness as far as opera goes...
I always find it telling that one way to sell mega amounts of tickets in New York (at least during the 90s) is to combine sort of mainstream avant garde with nudity.
The City Opera Moses und Aron was a sell-out. (In contrast, the City Opera Die Soldaten wasn't -- probably because Lisa Saffer kept her clothes on when she got raped.) And you couldn't even get near the box office for that Mark Morris reverse striptease dance piece.
The City Opera Moses und Aron was a sell-out. (In contrast, the City Opera Die Soldaten wasn't -- probably because Lisa Saffer kept her clothes on when she got raped.) And you couldn't even get near the box office for that Mark Morris reverse striptease dance piece.
M & A is not on my list--12-tone does nothing for me I'm afraid..my own shortcoming I know. Actually I kinda like Wozzeck.
M & A will be the matinee broadcast this coming Saturday I believe.
Who was the excellent Salome of a few years back--from Detroit I think--the only one I have ever seen who could actually do a good Dance of the Seven Veils--very shapely--took it all off at the final chord--saw her in Washington, the best performance of Salome overall I ever saw--don't think she was ever at the Met--at the City maybe, dunno.
M & A will be the matinee broadcast this coming Saturday I believe.
Who was the excellent Salome of a few years back--from Detroit I think--the only one I have ever seen who could actually do a good Dance of the Seven Veils--very shapely--took it all off at the final chord--saw her in Washington, the best performance of Salome overall I ever saw--don't think she was ever at the Met--at the City maybe, dunno.
You are not the only fan to seek this--at least one other has been after it for three months to no avail:
http://pub55.ezboard.com/foperafanandoperavideosalonfrm1.showMessage?topicID=58.topic
http://pub55.ezboard.com/foperafanandoperavideosalonfrm1.showMessage?topicID=58.topic
Maria Ewing? A good Salome? Ick, not my favorite. I have the video of her at Coven Garden in the early 90s - a good Royal Opera production as always, but she has neither the voice nor the dance ability, imo. I've never been satisfied with any soprano in the role of Salome - I've heard good voices and seen good dances, but unfortunately never in the same production. Since Salome is one of my favorite operas, I'm hoping Karita Matilla can turn the tide this spring.
rajah - I see you can google. I've been watching to see if that post would snare a response or two, but I'm glad to see there is at least one other interested fan out there.
JL - I think nudity will always draw a crowd. When done appropriately, it can be one of the most powerful elements of stage productions, including dance, opera, musicals, drama, etc.
rajah - I see you can google. I've been watching to see if that post would snare a response or two, but I'm glad to see there is at least one other interested fan out there.
JL - I think nudity will always draw a crowd. When done appropriately, it can be one of the most powerful elements of stage productions, including dance, opera, musicals, drama, etc.
It's kinda hard for me to judge the production of Benvenuto Cellini, having only seen the second act for real. The TV lecture hall does not offer a good view or a good listen. And, I did not know this opera at all. Never heard any music, never seen any videos. When I hear music for the first time, it sorta washes over me. I walk out with impressions of bits and pieces, some musical, some visual. (I was never any good at music dictation in school.) It's a very different experience than when I go to (for instance) Le nozze di Figaro, which I know backwards and forwards. I remember some pretty standard arias of the bel canto variety. Overall, I liked the idea of the commedia players portraying some of the action along with the main characters. However, some of their staging was distracting or downright stupid (rehashing what had already just happened on stage during Ascanio's aria). I enjoyed the performances overall, in particular, Isabel Bayrakdarian as Teresa & Kristine Jepson (who blew me away as the Composer in Ariadne auf Naxos last spring) as Ascanio.