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| Author |
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| 25 new of 221 responses total. |
rcurl
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response 188 of 221:
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Mar 19 19:51 UTC 2001 |
Sorry, I thought you were making an observation relevant to Tales of
Hoffman. What opera were you referring to?
mcnally?
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mcnally
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response 189 of 221:
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Mar 19 22:23 UTC 2001 |
My understanding is that the libretto was adapted from several
stories whose only original connection is that they were written by
E.T.A. Hoffmann and feature the several common elements you mention.
(I just noticed I've been leaving out an "n" for several responses now..)
I haven't read the original stories, but I was under the impression
that it is the invention of the librettist that Hoffman has replaced
the original protagonists of the three stories chosen, as is the story
of Hoffman's choice between his muse and the opera singer Stella.
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orinoco
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response 190 of 221:
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Mar 20 00:46 UTC 2001 |
(Looks like you had a relapse in the second paragraph, too.)
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mcnally
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response 191 of 221:
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Mar 20 01:20 UTC 2001 |
errata: n n n n n n n
<please distribute as needed..>
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rcurl
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response 192 of 221:
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Mar 20 02:48 UTC 2001 |
McNally is correct in #189, that what Barbier did was make E T A Hoffmann
himself the 'hero' of adventures adapted from several separate stories
written by Hoffmann. I guess it is time for us all to read the original
tales to determine whether the commonalities between the middle acts in
Barbier libretto are also present in the original tales. Quite a few
anthologies of Hoffmann's "Weird Tales" have been published. Apparently he
was an early Kafka in writing bizarre tales.
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krj
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response 193 of 221:
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Mar 26 15:56 UTC 2001 |
Sunday afternoon we saw UM School of Music's production of "La Perichole,"
by Jacques Offenbach, which I gather isn't performed often these days.
We really weren't sure why, since in both book and music it's easily
the equal of the Gilbert & Sullivan operettas, though "Perichole"
has a sexual edge which the Victorian G&S audience would never have
accepted.
The story is set in colonial Lima, Peru, though the conceit of the
production designer was to turn Lima into a 1950's seaside resort.
La Perichole is an impoverished street singer who would like to marry
Paquillo, another singer, but they can't afford the money for a marriage
license. While Perichole and Paquillo are separated by the machinations
of the plot, the Viceroy of Peru spies Perichole and decides to
rescue her from hunger and install her in the palace as his new mistress.
Of course proprieties must be observed: no unmarried woman can live
in the palace. So.... (and on and on and on...)
The music was lush and delightful throughout, and I think the score
was better suited to the young student voices than many UM productions
have been.
One thing which startled me was the age of the audience. Almost
everyone had white hair, and lots of the audience had mobility problems.
"Well, at least you only need a cane and not a wheelchair!" said
one of our neighbors to another. I don't know if this was because
it was the Sunday matinee, or because it was Offenbach. One elderly
gentleman seated behind us made a comment in the last act when
The Old Prisoner appeared in the dungeon: "Oh, he's a *great* character."
So he, at least, had seen this show before!
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dbratman
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response 194 of 221:
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Mar 28 22:11 UTC 2001 |
I saw "La Perichole" once.
Comparing your reactions to mine, I guess I have the gene for enjoying
Gilbert & Sullivan, but not any other light opera. I don't like "Die
Fledermaus" or "The Merry Widow" either.
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krj
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response 195 of 221:
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Jul 8 18:26 UTC 2001 |
Wow, I never write reviews any more on stuff I have seen. Sigh.
Upcoming: Friday, July 13: the Arbor Opera Theater, a local company
which Leslie has been doing some singing with, performs two 45-minute
chamber operas: Leonard Bernstein's "Trouble in Tahiti" and
Gian Carlo Menotti's "The Telephone." 8 p.m., $10, at the Vitosha
bed & breakfast & arts center (the former Unitarian Church),
1917 Washtenaw Avenue.
"Trouble in Tahiti" is about a crumbling marriage, in a setting using
lots of 1950s cultural idioms. I saw a student production of it
about a decade ago and it's a favorite work of mine.
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krj
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response 196 of 221:
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Jul 14 00:17 UTC 2001 |
The chamber opera presentation (resp:195) was cancelled.
Apologies if anyone showed up for it besides me.
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arianna
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response 197 of 221:
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Jul 19 04:25 UTC 2001 |
how was The Telephone? (MEnotti's one of my favs.)
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krj
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response 198 of 221:
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Jul 19 04:53 UTC 2001 |
Haven't seen it; the performance I was going to see was cancelled.
Arbor Opera Theater are doing "The Telephone" and "Trouble In Tahiti"
Thursday-Sunday at the Ann Arbor Civic Theater on Washington St.,
which I think is the old Performance Network space. I plan to
see the presentation Thursday.
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arianna
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response 199 of 221:
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Jul 19 06:11 UTC 2001 |
which show is Leslie in?
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krj
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response 200 of 221:
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Jul 19 15:53 UTC 2001 |
Leslie is in neither of these shows; Leslie is coming to the end of a
four week opera workshop in the Czech Republic, in the towns of
Kromeriz and Karlovy Vary.
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arianna
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response 201 of 221:
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Jul 22 04:35 UTC 2001 |
it's nice to be an audience on occassion. (:
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coyote
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response 202 of 221:
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Jul 23 03:39 UTC 2001 |
I saw Arbor Opera Theater's production of these shows today at the old
Performance Network/new Civic Theater. Both were highly enjoyable and
well-executed. I'll plan to attend other Arbor Opera productions in the
future.
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krj
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response 203 of 221:
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Nov 9 15:50 UTC 2001 |
Forgot to put this in earlier. The first performance of this show
has already run. This is the U.Michigan School of Music fall
opera presentation. I think it's an excellent modern opera,
we saw it in Montreal about four years ago.
>Nov.
>8-11 Opera Theatre Department: "The Consul" by Gian Carlo Menotti
>Thu-Sun Power Center for the Performing Arts
> 8:00 PM Thu-Sat/2:00 PM Sun.
> Directed by Joshua Major. Conducted by Kenneth Kiesler.
> The Consul tells the tale of a family trying to flee
> political tyranny in Eastern Europe. Sung
> in English. Tickets are available at the League Ticket
> Office for $20 (center
> orchestra/balcony), $15 (rear orchestra/ balcony); students
> with proper ID can purchase
> tickets for $7. For more information, call 764-2538.
Also running this weekend is UMS presenting Gluck's opera "Orfeo & Eurydice,"
with spectacular Polish contralto Ewa Podles singing Friday and Sunday
performances.
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krj
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response 204 of 221:
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Nov 11 05:54 UTC 2001 |
We saw the Saturday presentation of "The Consul." This was Gian
Carlo Menotti's 1950 opera set in Eastern Europe in the
early days of the cold war. Overall this was
a very good production from the UM School of Music. The dream &
hypnotism sequences still seem to have dated a bit for me, but
those are in the book, not unique to this presentation, and we
felt the final dream sequence was better in this production than
in the one we saw in Montreal. The main story is still pretty
chilling and sad.
The set of the Consul's waiting room was monumental -- one of the
best sets I've seen in a UM opera. Behind the desk of the Secretary,
the file drawers went up to the roof...
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orinoco
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response 205 of 221:
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Nov 13 16:02 UTC 2001 |
Some housemates of mine say that one and loved it. I spent the weekend in
Pittsburgh and missed out. Pity, really. Menotti rocks my world.
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katie
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response 206 of 221:
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Nov 15 18:39 UTC 2001 |
Then you will be happy to know that Menotti, himself, (age 90!) will be
conducting 'Amahl and the Night Visitors' in Detroit next month. That is,
if you live around here. My friend's son will be be one of the two actors
portraying Amahl.
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orinoco
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response 207 of 221:
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Nov 15 20:40 UTC 2001 |
Oh wow. Thanks for the tip.
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flem
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response 208 of 221:
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Nov 19 03:35 UTC 2001 |
I saw Ewa Podles in something else at Hill a year or two ago. I think it was
the Messiah, but I coudl be wrong. She was fantastic. I was hoping to go
to O&E, but this work thing is really messing me up.
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krj
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response 209 of 221:
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Mar 22 05:54 UTC 2002 |
OK, so it's taken me four months to say something about the UMS production
of Gluck's "Orpheus & Eurydice." *sigh*.
Seeing this the same weekend as Menotti's "The Consul" was like
bookending Western culture, both in theme and in operatic style.
Thematically, we leapt from Greek mythology to totalitarian horrors;
musically, Gluck is "The Great Reformer" of opera, who is considered to
have stripped away all the aspects of opera which were only to showcase
the singers, to try to get to presenting drama, and of course
Menotti represents almost-the-present-day. Before the 20th century's
excavation of Monteverdi's operas, Gluck's works were the oldest ones
likely to be performed.
Gluck's drama seems kind of slow for contemporary sensibilities, which
may be why the dance company was included to perk up the visuals a bit.
I think it's an interesting approach and might be fun to apply to some
of the Haydn operas which are recorded for their musical beauty, but
rarely performed on stage.
Eva Podles sang Orpheus, and she's a favorite in our house, ever since
she won over the Ann Arbor audience when she filled in for Cecelia Bartoli
at Hill Auditorium. Leslie said "she sings like a force of nature."
Gluck left one aria in the old florid style for Orpheus to sing,
and it was delightful to hear Ms. Podles navigate all those ornaments.
I've forgotten the name of the Euridyce; we saw her two years ago
as the daughter in Bolcom's "A View From The Bridge."
OPERA NEWS gave this production a tremendously enthusiastic review
and suggested that it should tour. This was the first time that the
University Musical Society had assembled its own opera production,
rather than importing one, and we were quite pleased. Having
front-row seats was an extra treat.
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krj
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response 210 of 221:
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Mar 22 05:58 UTC 2002 |
... and so much for advance warnings on local opera.
The University of Michigan School of Music has already opened their
spring opera, Rossini's "La Cenenterola," a character better known as
Cinderella. At Lydia Mendellsohn Theater through Sunday, I think,
check your favorite arts guide.
Eskarina mentioned that MSU's music school is performing
Offenbach's "Orpheus in the Underworld" this weekend. I have NO
details, try to contact the MSU music school if you are interested.
And, we completely missed the Comic Opera Guild's production of
Mozart's "The Magic Flute," in part because Leslie doesn't like
that opera much, and I only like the first act, before the heavy
Masonic symbolism comes crashing down like a ton of bricks.
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flem
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response 211 of 221:
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Mar 22 18:21 UTC 2002 |
One of the evil stepsisters in Cenerentola (sp?) is the director of the
Arts Chorale, that I sing in. I may or may not get to see it this weekend.
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dbratman
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response 212 of 221:
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Apr 2 00:30 UTC 2002 |
The most enjoyable opera production I've seen in recent years was a
Berkeley opera production of Rossini's L'italiana in Algeri, with an
English-language script that updated the story more than slightly.
It was titled "The Riot Grrrl on Mars." Freapin' wonderful.
(Hearing James Morris sing Horace Tabor in the San Francisco Opera
production of Ballad of Baby Doe was pretty impressive, too.)
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