Living at the Opera

From Seen and Heard International By: José M Irurzun; Pictures © Antoni Bofill Soloists, Orquestra Simfònica and Chorus Gran Teatre del Liceu. Conductor: Yves Abel., Gran Teatre del Liceu de Barcelona. 9 & 10.03.2010 (JMI) New Production based on the original co-production from New York Metropolitan, London’s Royal Opera and Vienna Staatsoper. La Fille du [...]

From Seen and Heard International By:James L. Zychowicz Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra of Lyric Opera of Chicago, Sir Andrew Davis (conductor) Civic Opera House, Chicago, 20.2.2010 (JLZ). Lyric Opera of Chicago’s new production of Hector Berlioz’s La Damnation de Faust marks the first performance of this work in the company’s repertoire. This work, which its [...]

Now that interviews with the singers have become an important intermission feature of the Met’s HD Telecasts, the viewing audience gets to meet the artists as they come off stage right after their performances. At the Encore Telecast of Carmen on February 3rd, it happened to be after Act Two, which stood out not only [...]

If the audience’s reaction to the January 6, Met Encore Telecast is to be taken as an example of how enjoyable a new opera production can be, then Bart Sher’s Contes d’Hoffmann rates as one of this year’s Telecast successes. The theater director won a Tony for his revival of South Pacific and then turned [...]

Since the January 16th, HD Telecast of Carmen was sold out here in Tucson, (livingattheopera.com will attend the Encore performance) it afforded the opportunity to listen to and tape the radio broadcast and to compare it to the upcoming telecast on February 3rd. . The standout event in the broadcast was not a happy one. [...]

From Seen and Heard International By: José M Irurzun; picture © E. Moreno Esquibel Soloists, Orquesta Sinfónica de Euskadi. Coro de Ópera de Bilbao.Conductor: Rani Calderón.Palacio Euskalduna de Bilbao. 14.11.2009 (JMI) Production from the Théâtre Capitole de Toulouse. My father used to say: “Days of plenty, nights of famine” and I can hardly find a [...]

By James L Zychowicz Reprinted with permission from Seen and Heard – Music Web’s Live Opera, Concert and Recital Reviews. Production: Director: David McVicar Set Design: Tanya McCallin Original Choreographer: Michael Keegan-Dolan Lighting: Paula Constable Chorus Master: Donald Nally Cast: Manon: Natalie Dessay Chevalier des Grieux: Jonas Kaufmann Lescaut: Christopher Feigum Count des Grieux: Raymond [...]

By Bernard Jacobson Reprinted with permission from Seen and Heard – Music Web’s Live Opera, Concert and Recital Reviews Seattle Opera Young Artists Program, soloists, members of the Auburn Symphony, cond. Brian Garman, dir. Peter Kazaras; Meydenbauer Center, Bellevue, WA, 6.4.2008 (BJ) Cast for L’Enfant et les sortilèges – Picture © Rozarii Lynch I should [...]