Opera Chic

It's Dudamel!

On a gray Milan Sunday, we want what Dudamel's having. And we want to know what he's pointing at!

Otto Klemperer's Long Journey through His Times

Yes. Yes. And yes again.

Teddy Tahu Rhodes on Don Giovanni: "I'm An Older Man"

And by the way, who will sing with David and Teddy at the Sydney Opera House?

Opera Chic and Grazia.it: Majestic Raymonda at Teatro alla Scala

Opera Chic's latest piece for her Stasera Esco column on Grazia.it is up! OC had the pleasure of taking-in Raymonda at Teatro alla Scala, the 1898 classical ballet masterpiece painstakingly revised at the Milan theater showing month.

 

Graham Vick's Verdi Otello at Opernhaus Zürich Premieres Thomas Hampson's Iago

Thomas Hampson turned to the dark side last week with his first Iago in Verdi's Otello. The American baritone rolled out the role premiere at Opernhaus Zürich in a new production of Verdi's Otello directed by Graham Vick. The British opera director's provocative, politically-polarizing production cast Fiorenza Cedolins as Desdemona, Jose Cura as Otello, and Daniele Gatti as the Conductor lol, all who exited to a rave review. Photos above and below are from a dress rehearsal earlier this month.

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Cedolins and Cura

The Visible Hand: Young Sellars @ Harvard

Alex Ross has this wonderful little anecdote from Robert Kiely, the longtime master of Harvard's Adams House:

A jolly personage came smiling up to me, shook my hand vigorously, introduced himself as Peter Sellars ‘80, and asked for twenty-five dollars from the Master’s Fund to clean up and paint an old basement storage room so that it could be used as a theater. At first I thought he was kidding, but it quickly became clear to me that despite deferential giggles and guffaws he was in earnest. So I figured, twenty-five bucks, what can I lose? But little did I imagine what Adams House and the college were about to gain! Within days, the dungeon-like space was cleaned, painted, and lighted. Not very well lighted, but there were a light bulb and two small dirty windows looking out at people’s feet passing up and down Plympton Street. Soon those feet were headed to Explosives B, the new Adams House theater, seating capacity a comfortable twenty or an uncomfortable forty sitting on mattresses left over from storage. The first production, if I remember correctly, was a Polish satire that involved an enormous hand made of plywood that kept entering menacingly from the only door.

More @ The Rest Is Noise

"Der Freischütz" & Wilhelm & Carlos & Erich & Willem & Myung & Simone

Muti's 2011 Birgit Nilsson Prize in Photos

One week ago, as OC was celebrating with Maestro Riccardo Muti his 2011 Birgit Nilsson Foundation Prize victory, she fell madly in love with Stockholm and its fresh herring, striking blonds, and crisp-white light. Here are some musical highlights from her camera, more found in her facebook.

The lobby of the Royal Swedish Opera was running an exhibition of 12 images from Birgit Nilsson's career performances on the RSO stage.

Shots from the press conference with Maestro Riccardo Muti, the managing director  of the RSO Birgitta Svendén and president of the Birgit Nilsson Foundation Dr. Prof. Rutberg Reisch.

 

The exterior of the RSO

And here's Andrew Patner's headline from the Chicago Sun Times that spawned the Million Dollar Maestro meme.

Fresh herring at Sturehof

Restaurant Volt was also amazing.

Gorgeous light:

Music in the air...join OC on facebook for the whole set.

Diana Vishneva Dances Couture

Thanks to Black Swan, 2011 is the year of ballet. Russian Vogue features prima ballerina Diana Vishneva of the Mariinsky Theatre - Kirov Ballet in a photo feature, modelling a wardrobe by Lanvin, Proenza Schouler, Givenchy, Viktor & Rolf, Bottega Veneta, Emilio Pucci, Valentino, Antonio Berardi, Jason Wu, Hugo, and Vika Gazinskaya. Фото by Patrick Demarchelier.

Christian Lacroix Brings Bling to the City of Lights

La Ville-Lumière cranks its wattage. On October 22, the Paris Opera Ballet rolls out a revamped world premiere of La Source, a ballet in two acts from 1866 which was originally choreographed by Arthur Saint-Leon with a libretto by Charles Nuitter. Choreographer/dancer Jean-Guillaume Bart set his new version to the original music of Léo Delibes and Ludwig Minkus and collaborated with French fashion designer Christian Lacroix on costumes and Eric Ruf on sets. 

Yesterday's Women's Wear Daily reports: 

Swarovski has armed Christian Lacroix with more than 2 million crystals to create costumes [...] Lacroix created 77 costumes, including 39 designs [...] Nadja Swarovski plans to host a dinner in Lacroix’s honor following a performance Nov. 3 at Palais Garnier.

 

Opera Chic & Grazia.it: Million Dollar Maestro Muti: Birgit Nilsson Prize Recap

Last week OC joined the party in Stockholm as the Birgit Nilsson Foundation presented its 2011 laureate, Riccardo Muti, with the gilded prize.

It's okay if you weren't there -- OC recapped the highlights for her Grazia column, Stasera Esco, which you can read about here. 

If your Italian is bootleg, click the link below for some ~magic~.

Opera Chic & Grazia.it: Juan Diego Flórez Conquers Teatro alla Scala (Again!)

Last Sunday, Juan Diego Flórez made his triumphant recital return to the Teatro alla Scala stage, absent as of almost four years, and OC of course was there.

Read the recap of the recital in her Grazia.it column, Stasera Esco, in Italian.

And if your Italian $kill$ are lacking,  you know the drill.

Mitsuko Uchida has Lunch with the FT

This past weekend's Lunch with the FT featured a brilliantly candid chat with pianist Mitsuko Uchida.

Chailly's Grizzly Beethoven

We <3 grain. And we <3 Chailly's rugged look. He's only a couple months away from the True Grit bear man.

Here's the cover of his upcoming 5-disc box set with his Gewandhausorchester Leipzig of Beethoven's complete symphonies recorded live at the Gewandhaus over the past three years.

La Fenice's New Le Nozze

Venice's Teatro la Fenice has been pouring itself into new productions of the Da Ponte/Mozart operas, starting last year with Don Giovanni and culminating in February 2012 with Cosi fan tutte. The creamy filling is Le Nozze di Figaro which opened on Friday night at Venice's fabergé theater.

Classical music critic Enrico Girardi of Corriere della Sera is a Le nozze lover, calling it, "the perfect opera, the culmination of four centuries of musical theater -- the masterpiece of all masterpieces," and while he normally likes young Venetian director Damiano Michieletto's opera productions, this one didn't convince anyone -- especially not the loggione who hurled boos on the director at his opening night curtain call.

From the photos, we find Michieletto's new production (with scenery by Paolo Fantin and costumes by Carla Teti) reminiscent of Claus Guth's 2006 controversial Salzburg Festival production with Nikolaus Harnoncourt's slow as fuq conducting.

The review isn't yet online, but Girardi wasn't a fan of conductor Antonello Manacorda's "two dimensional" conducting nor Alex Esposito's Figaro. Rosa Feola (Susanna), Carmela Remigio (the Countess) and Markus Werba (the Count) all made the cut. 

Anna's Hot & Heavy Autograph Session at The MET

A couple days ago while OC was in Stockholm partying with the unsinkable Maestro Muti, his bionic heart and Sweden's H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf for the maestro's win of the 2011 Birgit Nilsson Prize, La Netrebko was in NYC at The Metropolitan Opera House to sign autographs and her new CD for her devoted fans. 

Muti Gets Down with the Scandinavian Flava: 2011 Birgit Nilsson Prize Teaser

(photo: Fredrik Stehn)

Early today in Sweden's capital under the twinkling chandeliers and gold leaf of the Royal Swedish Opera, Riccardo Muti addressed the press as incoming 2011 Birgit Nilsson prize laureate, an award that comes with a dizzying 1 million dollar purse. Muti declined to address such details, but hinted that any funds, including funds extended philanthropically, would be made under the veil of anonymity. Aside from Muti's legions of super-fans, president of the Birgit Nilsson Foundation Rutberg Reisch and the RSO managing director Birgitta Svendén were on hand to congratulate the Neapolitan conductor (photo above, more here).

"You realize that maybe you've done something important with your life and that people around the world recognize the work that you've done as a musician," Muti said during the press conference from his most recent perspective as 2nd year MD of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Honorary Director For Life at Opera di Roma.

The award commemorates the deep impressions that Muti's slashed across the landscape of opera and classical music over the past two decades -- champion of rare works from Paisiello, Cimarosa and Martucci; fostering young talent through his Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini kids; and outreach initiatives in conflict areas (prisons, too).

An award ceremony was held later in the evening at the Royal Swedish Opera, attended by H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf and H.M Queen Silvia. Sondra Radvanovsky sang Tacea la notte placida accompanied by Gianandrea Noseda and the Royal Swedish Orchestra, followed by a stirring Va, Pensiero from Verdi's Nabucco.

A gala dinner was held at Stockholm's City Hall to toast Muti and Birgit Nilsson's extraordinary legacy -- Salome, Isolde, Turandot, Brunnhilde, Elektra -- reminding us that Birgit drank your milkshake. She drank it before you even ordered it. Even young Muti, when he was Music Director at Maggio Musicale, sacrificed his cherished leisure to take a train from Florence to Rome to hear Birgit sing Leonore in a concert version of Fidelio conducted by Lenny Bernstein, an honor reserved only for the Swedish dramatic soprano. More tomorrow after OC's refuels on fresh herrings.

(photo: Fredrik Stehn)

Live From Stockholm: Opera Chic Congratulates Riccardo Muti, Winner of the Birgit Nilsson Prize

Later tonight in Stockholm, Riccardo Muti will be awarded the Birgit Nilsson Prize for "extraordinary contributions" to music in the presence of H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf and H.M. Queen Silvia and Opera Chic

Then it's off to Oviedo, Spain, where next Friday, Oct 21, he will receive the Prince of Asturias arts prize.

 

Breaking News: Daniel Barenboim New Music Director at La Scala, Contract To Expire In 2016

La Scala has announced today that "Maestro Scaligero" (since 2006), ie some sort of "Principal Conductor" Daniel Barenboim has now been named Music Director effective from December 1, 2011 until December 31, 2016.

The Music Director post had remained vacant since 2005, when Riccardo Muti left la Scala.

La Scala points out that Barenboim, in his new role of MD, will be in Milan for 15 weeks a year.

 

Riccardo Muti Accepts "Honorary Director For Life" Title At Opera di Roma

Riccardo Muti just accepted the title of Honorary Director For Life at Opera di Roma; the conductor expained once again that his schedule is too busy for him to fit an actual Music Directorship in it, but he will continue his close relationship with the Rome opera.

Leona's Ballerinas

 

Our awesome girl crush on Leona Lewis bloomed in 2008 after reading that she had turned down a 1.5 million dollar offer from Harrods' boss Mohammed Fayed to host a ceremony that would open the London department store's annual summer sale.

As a devoted crusader of animal rights, the British singer-songwriter scolded Harrods' for selling fur and issued a firm "no thanks".

And we'll give you one guess at the person who greedily snatched-up the vacant emcee position::: Katherine Jenkins -- who was lustfully booed at the event /lol/ and then shamelessly posed with puppies.

Here's Leona at the Michael Jackson tribute concert that took place in Wales over the weekend -- hoping that ballerinas will distract us from her unforgiving outfit. Girl, embrace your womanly curves! 

We're gonna go ahead and thank Kanye West for making ballerinas the latest pop accessories.

Schrott Purrs Out Madamina for Placidone's 70th

We just found this on the 'tubez and not only is Conlon's DaPonte/Mozart glowingly-burnished, but dulce de leche Erwin Schrott straddles the line between hammy and sassy for a kosher Leporello.

Nothing Better Than a Good Hump: Rigoletto at FGO

Florida Grand Opera gets its hump on with extensive prosthetics for an upcoming production of Rigoletto. Baritone Mark Walters, who sings the lead, was recently fitted at Florida Grand Opera's costume studio, blueprinted by director Jeff Buchman for a deeper connection to Verdi's jester.

Walters will be joined by Michael Fabiano as the Duke and Nadine Sierra as Gilda for the premiere on January 28, 2012.

FGO put up photos of the process here, along with the video below.

Dangerous D'Arcangelo

Tall, dark and handsom Italian bass cantabile Ildebrando D'Arcangelo is currently rocking his Los Angeles Opera debut as Guglielmo in Così fan tutte.

He told the L.A. Times that he'll be back next season to sing playa Don Giovanni, which he models from, "Antonio Banderas in the Broadway musical 'Nine' and John Malkovich in the 1988 movie 'Dangerous Liaisons'." Read the rest of the interview here.

"An Italian In New York": Fabio Luisi Discusses His Future At the Met in Corriere della Sera

Fabio Luisi spoke to Corriere della Sera in a long interview where he confirms that, unlike Opera di Roma (that threatened a lawsuit after Luisi's decision to pull out of Rome's Elektra in order to be able to replace the still-indisposed James Levine at the Met) Wiener Symphoniker and San Francisco Opera and Carlo Felice in Genova, where he had to cancel engagements as well, have been cooperative, actually the institutions were "happy to be able to help the Met".

Of Levine he says:

"He's been responsible for forty years of an artistic renaissance that still benefits the Met... I'm happy to be part of the Met family in a more continuing and intense. We'll see what the future brings".

Of his vision of opera conducting:

"It's important, for a conductor, to consider oneself as a partner of the singers, to indicate them a destination and the way to reach it. The good conductor doesn't give orders but motivates the singers, with his support and persuasion".

He also reveals that he loves his new Upper West Side apartment and that he sometimes makes "musica da camera" playing at home with his wife, a photographer who's also a trained violinist.

And re: his penchant for wearing a suit and tie during rehearsals:

"I am convinced that wearing an appropriate outfit during rehearsals is a sign of respect, due to the people working with me: the orchestra, first and foremost, the colleagues and the collaborators".