Clip of the Week

Check out this early clip of Karita Mattila. Lovely.

Manon Lescaut Redux

My friends, it is difficult to know where to begin with my thoughts on the Met's HD broadcast of Puccini's Manon Lescaut. Well, no it's not, because it all begins and ends with Finnish soprano Karita Mattila.

In a word, Mattila is exuberant. Following act I, the lovely (and much less awkward!) Renée Fleming interviewed Ms. M. backstage. It was, nearly, the highlight of the broadcast. Karita is so genuine, full-of-life, chatterboxy, and quirky, that you just kind of fell in love with her charm. She did the splits, for crying-out-loud! Everyone in the audience was laughing, and we all applauded the end of the interview.



Karita brought that same exuberance to her performance, with mixed results. Her voice is lovely, to be sure, with a great mix of warmth and shimmer. I found her portrayal of Manon as an uncoordinated and awkward teenager off-the-mark. Certainly any girl of her rank and station would be educated to be supremely graceful and accomplished. She was a bit of a bull in a china shop in act II, and it seems that she actually did break a piece of the furniture. It was just a little over-the-top.

Her energy was perfect for the tragic scene of the lovers lost in the wasteland outside New Orleans (read Tommasini's review regarding Puccini's knowledge of Louisiana geography ...funny!). Her desperation and sense of her approaching death were very moving...it was lovely and perfect.

In summary, we definitely need performers like Karita Mattila. Her dedication to the art and can-do, full-of-life attitude can win over the fiercest opera critics. It's hard not to love her.

Heaven

Well, I've been blabbing so much about that Eugene Onegin broadcast. Here is the final scene.





Sigh. Did you know this performance is now available on video?

Macbeth Redux.

Well, I'm a bit at a loss my friends. Tony and I attended the live Met Opera HD screening of Verdi's Macbeth on Saturday. It was...good? Well, let me do it properly. By the by, did you know that Macbetto is Italian for Macbeth?

The Good:

• Verdi: The man could compose him some opera. The chorus writing for this piece is particularly amazing.
• The Singers: The singing was impeccable. I loved Željko Lucic's (Macbeth's) sound, and he and John Relyea (Banquo) sang a beautiful opening duet (I was really impressed---you have to be an almost perfect singer to sing Verdi really well). Maria Guleghina (Lady Macbeth) has a HUGE and gorgeous voice. Remember the Memorex commercials? That's how Tony and I felt when she first started singing. Lady Macbeth's part is a near-impossible challenge, and Ms. Guleghina handled it admirably.
• The Chorus: The singers of the chorus had a TON of work to do, and they were obviously very carefully prepared. I've never heard the Met Chorus sound like that.
  
• Added Bonus: We got to see the funny short chorister from Roméo et Juliette! He actually knew some of the words this time (some).

The Bad

• The Production: Again, the production just didn't cut it for me. Like Hansel and Gretel, this Macbeth was modernized (1940s-ish?), and the seemingly random choices (weird Magic 8-Ball thingy?, plethora of chairs?) just didn't gel for me. I didn't get it, and it took away from the story. As Tony put it, "Putting guns in Shakespeare just doesn't work." It's true. It looks stupid when a gun-toting character suddenly decides to use a sword instead...because a sword is easier? Hmm.

Next up is Manon Lescaut with the elegant and fabulous Karita Mattila!

New Year's Resolutions Check-In

Well, it's time to see how I'm doing with my new year's resolutions so far.

1. Be Positive. So far, I've started keeping a nightly journal listing positive things that happened during the day. This has been the hardest thing for me to get started. When I'm thinking through the positive, I think they all sound dumb. I might switch to do a morning pages journal. On a brighter note, I've been trying really hard (and succeeding) to be true to the absent. In other words, I don't say negative things about people behind their backs.
2. Design My Life. Well, I finally finished unpacking from our move!!!! The bedrooms and closets are quite organized. I have some more tweaking to do, but, I'm happy with the work I've done! I've also started some inquiries regarding BS programs in Clinical Lab Sciences. I'd like to start in the fall of 2009, when Hal will start preschool. Because I already have a bachelor's in biology (and an MM in voice...do I really want to do MORE school?), I can most likely complete the new degree in 15 months. The work seems interesting, it would be a good "family job (singing, not so much)," and the starting salary is excellent!
3. $200/month. So far, I have earned almost $60 selling on eBay this week! I project I'll bring in nearly $100 this month. Hooray!

Tune in Monday, for my recap of the Met's production of MacBeth (by Mean Joe Greene).

Breaking Down Hansel and Gretel

Well, in honor of my New Year's Resolutions, I am going to keep this redux of the Met Opera's HD broadcast of Engelbert Humperdinck's (really!!!) Hansel and Gretel (performed in English) mostly positive.

I went into the experience with pretty low expectations. I've seen H&G twice, and wasn't really overwhelmed with the show either time. Still, I had heard Alice Coote (Hansel) before and loved her, and was really excited to hear Christine Schäfer (Gretel), whom I had always wanted to hear. So, here goes:

THE GOOD

• Orchestra/Humperdinck/Conductor: The overture just blew me away, and I was in tears about three-fourths of the way through it. It was so lush, and German, and folksy and beautiful. Vladimir Jurowski was shockingly impressive (he's like 35 or 36!!!!). The man can conduct. Also he's handsome. Also he kind of looked like a vampire. I digress.
• The Singers: Alice Coote and Christine Schäfer were lovely, especially Alice, I must say. She has this gorgeous, kind of clear, kind of husky, English sound, and was a fantastic actress. The evening prayer that the two delivered was heart-stopping. Oh! The tempo was VERY slow, and they never sang above mp. Again, tears.
• The Production: I can sum it up as follows: super-creepy, yet very moving. The look was sort of Pan's Labyrinth meets Peter Greenaway. There were trees dressed in suits, and enormously fat chef/angels, and a fish butler! The trout sounds weird, but I kind of loved him...he was really sweet. It was a unique combination of the surreal (surroundings) and the real (the children were starving, for Pete's sake!), and it worked 99.9% of the time.
  

THE BAD

• It doesn't bother me when directors modernize or make anachronistic choices. That being said, I grow weary of productions (you, too, movie directors!) that try to shock JUST to be shocking. I didn't need to see the Mother almost commit suicide by taking a bunch of pills, or see her throw up in the sink. They are in desperate need. I get it, already!

Basta! Next up is MacBeth on Jan. 12.