Gilbert & Sullivan - Patience / Douglas, Olsen, Warlow, Australian Opera (1995) Review

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Gilbert & Sullivan - Patience / Douglas, Olsen, Warlow, Australian Opera (1995) ReviewUnlike previous Australian Opera adaptations of Gilbert & Sullivan operettas, this production
does not suffer from lyric substitution (that made obscure references even more obscure to non
Australian audiences).
The sound is very good and the quality of singing is about the best I've heard recorded on DVD (so far).
Unfortunately, there is no closed captioning or sub titles, so following along, for those unfamiliar with this score, can be a challenge. But everyone, including the chorus, enunciates quite well, so there shouldn't
be too much distress.
I hope there is more coming from Sydney. It would be nice to have a complete set (as the BBC attempted about 15 years ago). (I wonder if they are forthcoming?).
The quality of production was reminiscent of the D'Oyly Carte one that I caught (and carried in my memory)
in the early 1960's (at the NY City Center).
This is a Must Buy for a true Savoyard!Gilbert & Sullivan - Patience / Douglas, Olsen, Warlow, Australian Opera (1995) OverviewFull of all the popular tunes and rousing choruses expected from a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, Patience is a delightfully ridiculous story satirizing the late 19th century's obsession with beauty and emotion. The production opens with 20 lovesick maidens who abandon their worthy fiances to moon over two poets. Both bards, however, are distracted by the good-natured milkmaid Patience, who is far too sensible to fall under their spell. The hilarity inherent in the satire still remains, and this Australian Opera production is an irrepressibly cheerful piece of nonsense.

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Prokofiev - L'Amour des Trois Oranges (The Love for Three Oranges) (2005) Review

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Prokofiev - L'Amour des Trois Oranges (The Love for Three Oranges) (2005) ReviewThis opera was new to me -- previously the only Prokofiev operas I knew were "War & Peace" and "The Betrothal in a Monastery" -- and I was delighted with it from start to finish. It takes Prokofiev's touches of Commedia dell'Arte and expands them to encompass the entire production, chorus, leads, staging and all. The enormous size of the Bastille stage allows the director, Gilbert Deflo, to place the opposing choruses on opposite sides of the pit and to keep them in view throughout the piece, so that the audience is drawn in through the chorus. The stage tricks are delightful and suited to the pace of the production, including abundant fireworks, some good tumbling and juggling, and two 'flying changes' for the Princess turned into a rat and back again.
The music of the opera is declamatory rather than lyrical: it proceeds as a drama more than as a conventional opera with arias and duets and so forth. Nevertheless, the music is brilliant and serves the story admirably, and the orchestral score positively crackles. The famous March is used to finish off the evening as well as in its more usual places, which means that the audience does have a good tune to whistle on the way home.
The singers, with the exception of the wonderful Jose van Dam as the magician, were not familiar to me, but I was deeply impressed with Charles Workman as the Prince, a fine lyric tenor with a sweet tone and enough power for heavier roles should he move to them. (At the moment his repertoire is largely Mozart, Rossini, and Rameau, but he also has Strauss (Arabella), Janacek (The Makropoulos Case) and Hindemith (Cardillac) so he may widen his scope even further.)
If you like Prokofiev, modern opera, theatricality at its best, commedia, or just sheer enjoyment, this is for you. As a postscript, if you want the lyric and more highly dramatic side of Prokofiev I strongly recommend the Paris Opera production of "War and Peace" on TDK.Prokofiev - L'Amour des Trois Oranges (The Love for Three Oranges) (2005) Overview

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Tan Dun: Marco Polo (2009) Review

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Tan Dun: Marco Polo (2009) ReviewRichard Wagner envisioned the theater of the future as a coming together of all the different arts. Certainly for Wagner as for most other composers this ideal remains an ideal. Wagner may have brought together music, word and stagecraft but where is dance in his theater?
Marco Polo on the other hand seems just such a work where all the different arts work in harmony for the sake of the whole. Most operas use the words to convey the story. Not Marco Polo. The words are few and far between and they do not primarily carry the plot. For plot you have to look elsewhere - the words, the music, the choreography, the stagecraft, everything.
And for those of us accustomed to rather linear works Marco Polo poses some problems. It may be advisable to play the synopsis before jumping into the work. I preferred to jump in with no cheat sheets. It was hard at first but after a while I could follow the outline of the plot. I think I caught maybe 70% of what was happenning. And that is all right. Marco Polo is a strange and wonderful experience - just as the original story is.
The music as a blend of East and West. I was a little put off by the Chinese style of singing until I realized it wasn't so different from Western Baroque opera seria. Both styles put the singer's virtuosity first.
Is Marco Polo for everyone? Hardly. I have seen the three DVDs of Tan Dun operas and Marco seems the most difficult to comprehend. But it is a wonderful sound world and once you take it on its own terms rather than the expectation of what an opera should be it is quite a show.Tan Dun: Marco Polo (2009) OverviewDUN:MARCO POLO - DVD Movie

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Wagner: The Ring of the Nibelung ( Das Rheingold / Die Walküre / Siegfried / Götterdämmerung) (Boulez/Chereau Ring Cycle) (1980) Review

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Wagner: The Ring of the Nibelung ( Das Rheingold / Die Walküre / Siegfried / Götterdämmerung) (Boulez/Chereau Ring Cycle) (1980) ReviewAs much as this production detracts from the teutonic tradition that Wagner designed the Ring for, this centenniary production of the Ring with Patrice Chereau as the director, Pierre Boulez as conductor, and Brian Large as the very talented producer, is possibly the best in the market. No, it doesn't have a cast that has the dimension and experience of the Solti or Karajan rings, but without a doubt, it is the most visually engaging and dramatically correct rendition of Wagner's tetralogy. Others would say that the Levine Ring provides the most traditional and faithful production with respect to Wagner's score, and I have no doubts that the sets used in the Met are very beautiful. This set, however, changes the concept from a legendary setting of mountains and god-palaces to a more French social hierarchy environment. The interpretation makes sense, but it isn't only this which makes this Ring come to life. It is the involvement of a very talented conductor and a cast of marvelous singers which make this Ring a most memorable moment.
Donald McIntyre may not have Hans Hotter's great voice or James Morris' great bel canto interpretation of Wotan's role, but it certainly exudes a nobility and a richness absent from other recordings. Gwyneth Jones is a marvelous Brunnhilde. For her alone would I see this Ring day after day. It is note perfect, powerful, and very dramatic. I'd say that she has the best Brunnhilde overall of the ones I've heard.
Wagner: The Ring of the Nibelung ( Das Rheingold / Die Walküre / Siegfried / Götterdämmerung) (Boulez/Chereau Ring Cycle) (1980) OverviewWAGNER:DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN - DVD Movie

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Bizet - Carmen / Maazel, Migenes, Domingo DVD (1984) Review

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Bizet - Carmen / Maazel, Migenes, Domingo DVD (1984) ReviewThis film production of Bizet's Carmen, shot on location in southern Spain, is magnificent. The singing and acting are first rate, as are the sound and picture quality of the DVD. Carmen, like Don Giovanni, is a complex, multi-faceted character that can be played a variety of ways. Julia Migenes portrays Carmen with raw sensuality, and it works, as we see her opposite, Don Jose (performed brilliantly by Placido Domingo), unable to escape her womanly powers. The film uses dialogue rather than recitatives, as that is what Bizet intended--Carmen is an opera comique, which means that spoken dialogue (not recitatives) are employed between the singing. The dialogue definitely heightens the drama of Carmen, and it was only after Bizet's death that sung recitatives were unfortunately used in in this opera. Because this is a film version of Carmen, there are many creative and symbolic options that couldn't be done in the opera house. The use of a live bull in the ring is extemely effective, and it is the first image we see in this film. We see how beautiful and noble the bull is, how strong and free spirited he is. This powerful and tragic image will stay with us throughout the film. The use of such symbolism allows us ultimately to compare Carmen to the brave bull who would rather die than surrender its freedom, while don Jose is the bullfighter who must kill the object he lives for and loves most. There is real frisson between Domingo and Migenes as they heat up the screen--Domingo gives an amazing performance of don Jose's gradual fall and ultimate self-destruction. There are no disappointments in the entire cast. The final act is most effective as don Jose essentially is transformed into the matador while Carmen represents the courageous bull--refusing to back down, she must die, just as the bull must be sacrificed in the ring. While they are performing their "dance of death" we are shown clips of Carmen's new lover, a matador, in the ring facing a real bull--this is a powerful juxtaposition that could obviously only be done on film. This is a striking film, one that captures the very essence of Carmen and her world, and it only gets better with repeated viewings.Bizet - Carmen / Maazel, Migenes, Domingo DVD (1984) OverviewAll the passion and spectacle of Bizet's Carmen comes to life in this dazzling screen opera starring Placido Domingo and Julia Migenes-Johnson. In 19th century Seville, the lusty, tempestuous Carmen (Migenes-Johnson) seduces a naive Army corporal, Don Jose (Domingo), newly assigned to the village fortress. Jose abandons his career, his fiancée and even his dying mother for the love of this sultry gypsy. But soon she spurns him in favor of a toreador, Escamillo (Ruggero Raimondi). Crazed with jealousy, Jose begs Carmen to return to him, but her taunting declaration of independence results in tragedy. Shot entirely on location in Andalusian Spain, Bizet's Carmen has been hailed as the definitive version of this classic opera. 155 minutes.

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Rossini: La Cenerentola - Metropolitan Opera (2010) Review

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Rossini: La Cenerentola - Metropolitan Opera (2010) ReviewI saw this production live onstage in 1997 with Cecilia Bartoli in the title role (Alessandro Corbelli was the Dandini, Ramon Vargas the prince, Michele Pertusi the Alidoro, with Levine conducting), and have to say that I'd rather have had that cast on DVD. That said, there is some wonderful singing and music-making among this cast. Corbelli, one of operatic history's greatest Dandinis, is now very much in demand as Don Magnifico, as is Lawrence Brownlee as Prince Ramiro. Garanca is a physically lovely and vocally elegant Cenerentola; her heroine is both touching and strong. Brownlee possesses considerable musicality and a formidable technique, despite his tendency to sing with his head a bit sideways; and Corbelli displays his usual undisputed mastery with character and text, creating a more "human" and less farcical Magnifico than is more often seen. The Alidoro and Dandini are quite serviceable, if unremarkable.
Soundwise, there seem to be some problems with the mics downstage left--whenever the singers have to go to that quadrant of the stage, they suddenly sound as if they're singing in an adjoining bathroom with a very echo-y shower.
As for the production, I didn't much care for it in 1997, and it still hasn't grown on me. Visually cartoonish, there are too many predictable moments in the staging. For example, in the famous sextet "Quest'e' un nodo avviluppato" ("This is a tangled knot"), Ramiro winds a rope around the other singers. And at the end, he and Cenerentola appear on top of a huge wedding cake. How imaginative is that??? I've seen much better. Still, for over-all singing and Corbelli's Magnifico, this is a good DVD to have.
BUT FOR A BETTER ALL-AROUND PERFORMANCE, stick with the 1995 production from Houston Grand Opera with Bartoli, Gimenez, and Corbelli (as Dandini).Rossini - La Cenerentola The singing is more stylish, and the ensembles much more razor-sharp in the Houston production than on the Met DVD.Rossini: La Cenerentola - Metropolitan Opera (2010) Overview

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Mussorgsky - Boris Godunov (1990) Review

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Mussorgsky - Boris Godunov (1990) ReviewLook no further - finally, Mussorgsky's ideas about his great drama have been realized. This is the ONLY video of Boris Godunov using Mussorgsky's own orchestration. (After the composer's death, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov took it upon himself to create a new orchestration, arrogantly considering that Mussorgsky could not possibly have meant his music to sound the way it did. Unfortunately, this reorchestration was the standard version until very recently - almost all the available recordings of the great Russian basses in this role are the Rimsky-Korsakov version.) Murder, treachery, passion and misery - what more could one want from a great opera? Mussorgsky's epic is brilliantly staged by the great Russian film director Andrei Tarkovsky in a rich production from London's Covent Garden (1983). Tarkovsky succeeds in posing disquieting psychological questions in a brutally faithful rendition of great originality and profundity. There are no cuts in Mussorgsky's music in this production: it is allowed to speak for itself. The film dates from 1990, when the production was given and filmed at St. Petersburg's ornate Mariinsky Theater. A mostly Russian cast, including Olga Borodina as Marina, Alexei Steblianko as the false Dimitri, Sergei Leiferkus as Rangoni and Alexander Morosov as Pimen, is headed by the English bass Robert Lloyd in the title role (and only rarely is his foreign accent noticeable!). The singing is magnificent throughout - I think the recording technology itself is responsible for a loss of sheen from the soloists and the orchestra, conducted with true insight and bravura by a young Valery Gergiev. The chorus is superb. My only criticism is that, throughout, the film is somehow too clean and self-conscious. The extensive subtitles are extremely helpful, as are the all-too-brief notes included with the set. I hope your interest will be piqued enough to delve into this fascinating period of Russian history. Perhaps the greatest triumph of this film is that Mussorgsky's own vision of Russia is at last presented as I feel he would have wished. Bravo to the entire production!Mussorgsky - Boris Godunov (1990) OverviewItem Name: Mussorgsky - Boris Godunov; Studio:Philips

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Jules Massenet: Manon (2008) Review

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Jules Massenet: Manon (2008) ReviewThe theatricality of this life performance of Manon on DVD is amazing. Paterson's idea to update Manon into the 50s is the creation of a genius with so many metaphors and symbolism. Like many sixteen-year-old girls, Manon dreams of becoming a movie star for fame, prosperity and the "good" life. The presence of cameras on stage from the beginning gives a physical glimpse of her dreams. And every bobby soxer dreams of the day she'll put on sheer hosiery with the sexy seam in the back. The black magic-marker line Manon inscribes on the back of her nude sexy leg is a raw manifestation of her subconscious desire that Paterson captures to
perfection.
What about the music? After all, Manon is an opera. Personally, Manon is not one of my favorite operas. The first two acts, musically speaking, are rather tedious and tenuous. The heavy dramatic singing picks up later and if it's well sung, it makes Manon a heavyweight and a tearjerker. Netrebko's Manon, with the help of Paterson's intelligent direction,
projects the character's flaws, immaturity and shallowness with honesty that makes you feel sorry for her. And her singing? Netrebko's in total command with unbelievable either playful or dramatic color. And her death scene in the end is destined for prosperity. Netrebko not only sings and acts well but she even dies better!
Villazon is in excellent form with secure top but he appears to be a liitle cautious with the size of his sound. He and Netrebko make the "dream team" one more time, as this production shows; and this DVD is highly recommended. The sound of the orchestra is underpowered at times, maybe due to a little sluggishness from the podium.
Constantine A. Papas
El Paso, TexasJules Massenet: Manon (2008) Overview

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Mozart - Le nozze di Figaro Review

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Mozart - Le nozze di Figaro ReviewMy kids (5 yrs and 2 yrs) love this video, and with good reason. We have three versions of Figaro at home, and this is by far our favorite. It's a feast for the eyes as well as the ears: colorful, bright, well-acted, great sets and costumes, extremely well-directed by Stephen Medcalf. It's interpreted in the best comic, fun-loving tradition. The singing is spectacular, especially that of the four principals. Gerald Finley is the best Figaro I've heard on video. He and Alison Hagley (Susanna), have a wonderful rapport onstage .
Some useful info: This is the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, with Bernard Haitink conducting the London Philharmonic. It stars Gerald Finley (Figaro), Alison Hagley (Susanna), Renee Fleming (the Countess), and Andreas Schmidt (the Count). It's a 2-video set (190 minutes), sung in Italian with English subtitles.
Even if you've never seen an opera video, get this one -- you'll love it. It's excellent in all respects.Mozart - Le nozze di Figaro OverviewStephen Medcalf's superb production opened on the 60th anniversary of the first performance at Glyndebourne, inaugurating the new opera house. "One listened enthralled, as Haitink, Hagley and Finley lifted a loving, carefully prepared performance to greatness." OPERA Mozart's comedy presents a scenario where society overcomes its differences - social, sexual, generational - through the exercise of the humane values of mutual understanding, respect and forgiveness.

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Verdi - Aida / Levine, Domingo, Millo, Metropolitan Opera (1989) Review

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Verdi - Aida / Levine, Domingo, Millo, Metropolitan Opera (1989) ReviewThis 1989 Metropolitan production conducted by James Levine is visually stunning with its massive sets by Gianni Quaranta, in a palette of cream, gold and brown.
Domingo's Rhadames is robust and masculine, and his performance is well acted and heartfelt, and Aprile Millo, beautiful in ebon makeup and with her marvelous profile, looks every inch the Ethiopian princess taken slave; her sound is rich, full of emotion, and with wonderful pianissimos. For me, her "O patria mia" is the highlight of this opera, and she shines in every scene she is in.
I have a special fondness for Act One, Scene two, the "Temple of Vulcan", with "Nume, custode e vindice" one of the loveliest of the opera's melodies. Here it gets a stately treatment, and though it does not come close to the musical power of the Domingo/Ghiaurov/Muti CD, it is still good listening. Act Two, Scene Two, the Victory March, has some well behaved horses, a simple but pleasant ballet choreographed by Rodney Griffin with attractive dancers, and the entrance of the great Sherrill Milnes. Though well past his prime vocally, he looks fabulous, and is believable as the conquered King Amonasro. The cast is rounded out by Dolora Zajick as Amneris, Dimitri Kavrakos as the Egyptian King, and Paata Burchuladze as Ramfis.
Though the stage direction is on occasion a little static, and the singing not always quite up to par, this is one of Verdi's grandest operas, and makes for very enjoyable viewing, and every minute spent with Aprile, is time well spent.
The subtitles are legible and helpful, and it comes with a small booklet with the synopsis in English and French; total running time is 158 minutes.Verdi - Aida / Levine, Domingo, Millo, Metropolitan Opera (1989) Overview

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The Magic Flute (The Criterion Collection) (1975) Review

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The Magic Flute (The Criterion Collection) (1975) ReviewAbout Swedish auteur Ingmar Bergman's 1974 film-version of Mozart's fairy-tale opera "The Magic Flute" ("Trollflöjten" in Swedish), I am probably unable to be objective. I saw it when it came out, when I was in my second year as a student of Germanic and Scandinavian languages at UCLA. The girl I took to see it on the night that it opened at the Avco cinemas on Westwood Boulevard was baffled by it. She made it perfectly clear that she had no interest in dating me again. But my mother liked it when I insisted that she accompany me to see it, and so did my sister. Two years ago, when my son turned four, I ordered the VHS edition and introduced the lad to it; he responded immediately, was deeply impressed by the antics of Håken Hågegård's Papageno, and has been humming the tunes ever since. Recently I showed it to the students in my "Critical Philosophical Problems" class at Northwood University in Midland, Michigan. The Criterion DVD of Bergman's production is the best home-version yet. What is it that makes this the most endearing cinematic or video representation of Mozart's opera? Bergman filmed in the baroque Drottningsholmtheater in Stockholm. He exploits the wonderful charm of eighteenth century stagecraft and fosters the illusion that we are indeed witnessing a repertory traversal of "The Magic Flute" in a public venue. During the Overture, for example, we see the many faces in the audience, including a little girl (said to be Bergman's daughter) whose changing expression becomes the touchstone for onlooker-response during the two acts. On the other hand, we are aware that we are not really viewing some haphazard filming of a performance in the style of PBS at the Met. For the most part, Bergman takes us inside the action so that we forget the presence of stage and audience. So many details call out for notation. Notice how, by emphasizing a nod or a dirty look, Bergman conveys that the Three Ladies are not merely a girlish trio but resentment-driven servants of a resentment-driven Queen of the Night. Remark the gradual alteration of the Queen's appearance. Hågegård's bird-catcher surpasses any other know to me (and Bergman as director contributes mightily to the result). Ulrik Cold's Sarastro becomes a real and complicated person rather than the cardboard wiseman and lawgiver that he usually is. Swedish is as sinagble a language as Italian, with many feminine endings, so that the poetry strikes the ear as just as beautiful as the music. The English substitles are easy to follow and unobtrusive. One would have to be made of stone or wood not to laugh and cry by turns during the two hours and twenty minutes of this extraordinary film. Buy it for your children, especially if they are young. The dragon alone justifies the price of admission.The Magic Flute (The Criterion Collection) (1975) OverviewIngmar Bergman puts his indelible stamp on Mozart's exquisite opera in this sublime rendering of one of the composer's best-loved works: a celebration of love, forgiveness, and the brotherhood of man. The Magic Flute (Trollflöjten) stars Josef Köstlinger as Tamino, the young man determined to rescue a beautiful princess from the clutches of parental evil. Criterion's edition features the film's glorious soundtrack in the original stereo format.

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Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen - Complete Ring Cycle (Levine, Metropolitan Opera) (1990) Review

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Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen - Complete Ring Cycle (Levine, Metropolitan Opera) (1990) ReviewAccording to the liner notes that accompany this seven-DVD set of Wagner's "Der Ring des Nibelungen," the composer had no time for critics, especially those who liked to point out a certain lack of logic in his musical dramas.
(Take that, Anna Russell! - Entire careers have been based on making fun of the Ring Cycle's plot.)
This Met version of the Ring under the direction of James Levine might be called 'traditional' by some and 'stodgy' by others. There are no Siegfrieds in space suits or Rhine Maidens cavorting in front of a hydroelectric dam. Special effects have been kept to a minimum--a rather tame dragon (although wonderfully sung by Matti Salminen who also is a great, brooding hulk of a Hagen), no goat-drawn chariots, no flying horses. In fact there are no horses at all, which makes for a slightly surreal funeral scene in 'Götterdämmerung' where Brunnhilde is supposed to sing to her horse, Grane, then ride him into the flames of Siegfried's funeral pyre.
However, the Ring isn't about special effects or acting. It's about Wagner's glorious music. I've only seen one other Ring Cycle--Patrice Chéreau's 1976 Bayreuth production (also out on DVD)--and he (incorrectly, I think) emphasized the stage drama rather than the music. He also ignored Wagner's mythical setting and tried to turn the Ring into a statement about nineteenth-century robber-barons.
Levine's version, stodgy though it may appear, emphasizes the music. This is the Ring Cycle you want to start with. It reflects the spirit of Wagner's intentions (if not quite the actual staging), and the singing is excellent. This is not the dream cast from the golden age of Wagnerian singers, but wait till you hear Jessye Norman as Sieglinde, ringing out her "Oh hehrstes Wunder!" just after her whole world comes crashing down around her. If this unearthly cry doesn't send chills down your spine, maybe Wagner isn't for you. One of the other reviewers felt that Norman was too loud for the other singers, but I think just the opposite is true. James Morris is a complex, ultimately tragic Wotan. Hildegard Behrens is a brilliant, intuitive Brunnhilde. Their final scene together in 'Die Wälkure,' as Wotan puts his daughter to sleep within a ring of fire is one of the high points of this Ring. But the one truly Wagnerian voice in this production belongs to Jessye Norman.
If you'd like to learn more about Wagner's Ring Cycle, read "Wagner's Ring: Turning the Sky Round" by Father M. Owen Lee (highly recommended) or Charles Osborne's "The World Theatre of Wagner."Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen - Complete Ring Cycle (Levine, Metropolitan Opera) (1990) OverviewItem Name: Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen / Levine, Metropolitan Opera (Complete Ring Cycle); Studio:Deutsche Grammophon

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