What opera have you been watching lately?

**Festat** · July 26th, 2016, 12:27 PM

Originally Posted by Soave_Fanciulla

Second watching of this confirms that Dardanus has some amazing music. This is a wonderful production with very good singing and conducting.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 29th, 2016, 04:29 AM

In his later operas Mozart leaves us wanting to know more – does Leporello find another master who is as much fun? Does Donna Anna EVER marry Don Ottavio? Who really end up with whom in Così? Does Don Alfonso have any regrets about his actions? How long before Count Almaviva strays again? (At least we know about Cherubino and the Countess, thanks to Beaumarchais)

And how did Konstanze and Blonde fare back in the Europe of the Enlightenment? Do they ever have any regrets? After all, Belmonte particularly is a bit callow…

The Lyon Production of Die Entführung aus dem Serail on Culturebox sets out to answer some of these questions. With the help of extra dialogue, the story is told as a flashback, starting with a party at Belmonte’s father’s house. Some pertinent points are made about the position of women and servants in Europe at the time. The most intriguing change is that Osmin is a handsome young man, genuinely in love with Blonde, rather than the paunchy lecher usually portrayed. The cast of young singers is pretty good and it’s worth a look if you can access it in your area.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 30th, 2016, 09:31 AM

Jean-François Borras and Florian Sempey are both lovely.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · August 2nd, 2016, 07:54 AM

This year's Parsifal from Bayreuth. Utterly brilliant - am really hoping for a video.

**Povero Buoso** · August 2nd, 2016, 05:43 PM

In light of not having seen a new opera recently (much to my shame a new video game that I had been looking forward to came out) and while I have been listening intently over the past week to old operas I had not seen a new one since Edgar. I decided to go for another Verdi on the Met On demand (the Netrebko one)that has been praised for being a very good version of an opera many enjoy here. I found that both claims regarding Macbeth were correct. Firstly that it was a very good opera that I enjoyed immensely I think the Netrebko Macbeth is the 1865 version though with the mixing that apparently goes on with Macbeth I am not 100% sure. Nevertheless I enjoyed it greatly as a first experience. More importantly the other aspects were also strong while the acting ranged from excellent (Netrebko, Calleja and The Witches) to not as excellent but still very good (everyone else on a wide spectrum but no one especially let the team down) the singing was consistently great across the board. I would say my only major pet peeve were some aspects of the production which I felt less effective particularly when the characters start fighting each other with rifles and shotguns as melee weapons. A special mention should also go to Lady Macbeth's chair walking/dancing which also struck me as foolish. These were both directorial decisions I can only term as really really silly and made me laugh at a points when I should have been engrossed in a climatic scene or finale.

9.0/10 Overall an excellent introduction to the opera as it was very good to excellent (Any recommendations on a recording that is close to this version of the score would be much appreciated!). Singing was excellent but a quarter point off for some less excellent acting. Three quarters of a point deducted for the other minor faults in what was otherwise a good production primarily because of melee rifles and shotguns which seems an unneeded directorial liberty and Lady Macbeth's chair walking/dancing which was also ludicrous and unneeded.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · August 2nd, 2016, 07:10 PM

Originally Posted by Povero Buoso

... Lady Macbeth's chair waling/dancing which was also ludicrous and unneeded.

All I could think when that was happening was "Don't fall off, look where you are going" which are NOT the right thoughts during the sleep-walking aria. I hate it when directors ask singers to do something that is potentially dangerous (particularly during a big aria, when they are bound to be distracted) - it gets in the way for me...

**Festat** · August 2nd, 2016, 10:55 PM

Originally Posted by Soave_Fanciulla

This year's Parsifal from Bayreuth. Utterly brilliant - am really hoping for a video.

I feel like this would make me like Parsifal.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · August 3rd, 2016, 04:03 AM

Originally Posted by Festat

I feel like this would make me like Parsifal.

It's straightforward and clear in its message, and fast, hehe!

And the conducting and cast are excellent.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · August 3rd, 2016, 10:24 AM

Vittorio Grigolo and Kate Lindsey both splendid in Contes d'Hoffmann

**Hoffmann** · August 3rd, 2016, 01:55 PM

Originally Posted by Festat

I feel like this would make me like Parsifal.

Ryan McKinny (as Amfortas, above) was a Grand Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (2007) - the same class with Michael Fabiano, Angela Meade, Alek Shrader and Amber Wagner. That was some class.

I didn't recall McKinny from the PBS documentary on that year's auditions until reading his bio during DC's recent Ring staging, when he sang both Donner (Das Rheingold) and Gunther (Götterdämmerung). We were then lucky to see him as a substitute, singing Kurwenal in Tristan und Isolde in June.

He had more clothes on in all of the above.