Opera Chic

From String Quartet to Boy Choir: Dustin Hoffman's Latest for Hollywood

Dustin Hoffman boosted the profile of retired, classical musicians last year with Quartet, and he'll do the same for boy choirs next year, starring in the indie drama 'Boychoir'.

'The story centers on a troubled and angry 11-year-old from the wrong side of the tracks who finds himself at an East Coast school, where he engages in a battle of wills with a demanding choir master, played by Hoffman, who recognizes a unique talent in the boy. [Alfred] Molina will play a teacher at the school, and [Kathy] Bates will portray the school’s headmistress.'

Filming is slated for February 2014 in Connecticut and New York.The troubled boy singer is still uncast, but the film will feature singers from the Princeton, New Jersey-based American Boychoir School (not the Vienna Boys, above).

That plot definitely won't spawn any p0rn spin-offs. Never. And definitely not a Boychoir/Graduate mash-up. No way.

Barenboim Says 'Ciao Ciao' to La Scala Two Years Early

Pierluigi Panza writes in today's Corriere della Sera that Daniel Barenboim will leave his role of Music Director at Teatro alla Scala on December 31, 2014, two years prior to the end of his contract and just three months after Lissner leaves for the Paris Opera (who also broke his contract early with La Scala).

"It's the end of an era," said Lissner on Barenboim's early dismissal. "Barenboim was clear that he's got other projects to attend to, like his Western Divan Orchestra Academy that he's building in Berlin with Frank Gehry."

End of an era, indeed (disrupted by recent sideshows of incoming Scala MD designates) with La Scala and its orchestra as backdrop to Barenboim's Wagner legacy (get a room already, you two!), which culminated in a Ring Cycle over the seasons when Italy should have been prioritizing the bicentennial birthday of its native son, Verdi. This, according to a handful of La Scala's Prada-heeled, Bulgari-jeweled donors, who grew as weary as their check-writing hands from the predictable Barenboim/Wagner onslaught that opened its new seasons over the past years.

Since 2007, Barenboim's opened four of Scala's prestigious December opening nights and aside from Carmen in 2009, the remaining three have been Wagner: Tristan (Dec. 2007), Walkurie (Dec. 2010) and Lohengrin (Dec. 2012). Between Wagner, he's given La Scala some Prokofiev (The Gambler); Verdi (Aida and Boccanegra); and Mozart (Don Giovanni). Next year will bring four non-Wagner commitments -- Rimskij-Korsakov's The Tsar's Bride, Cosi fan tutte, Simon Boccanegra and Deborah Warner's Fidelio to open the 2014-15 season.

La Scala's Aida Gets the Isotta Treatment

This weekend Teatro alla Scala revived Frengo's gilded Aida, you know, the same production that framed the Alagana-Celeste-Aida meltdown and inflamed a million groins with Roberto Bolle's golden thong and Myrna Kamara's rock solid thighs, so it's only natural that there has to be some drama attached.

Corriere della Sera's lionized critic Paolo Isotta flexed his acerbic wit (and gave a shout-out to Flaubert's Salammbô) in his review, praising Ekaterina Semenchuk as Amneris and lauding Hui He in the title role as "a full-bodied, gorgeous voice with an exact vibrato that wasn't too much or too little, elegant portamenti, a proper sense of phrasing (if it hadn't been continuously impeded by Noseda) and perfect Italian diction."

Clearly not impressed with conductor Gianandrea Noseda, Isotta went straight up Salinger-vs.-Chaplin mode: "[...] He rises and falls like a baby on a rocking horse, sending kisses to the stage and the pit, imitating the gestures of Oren and Gergiev. On his arms appear bird wings, tired from a flight devoid of light."

It's a relatively declawed (and poetic) criticism from his usual vinegar, like earlier this year when he vitriolically slammed Harding's Verdi and Wagner, which instigated Lissner's banhammer. If Harding can walk it off, Noseda can, too (espeically since we made this adorable photoshop)!

The San Francisco Opera's Against-All-Odds Dutchman

An opera is only as good as its lead diva's/divo's health (when in doubt/duress, bring in a shock & awe director or a preening conductor), but dehydrating air travel, hotel swapping, restaurant roulette, meet & greet with touchy-feely fans, off-kilter hours and daily misting under collegial spit thrust our beloved singers into germ-ripe environments overrun by lackadaisical antibiotics. ♪ It's like raa-aaaai-ain on your wedding day ♪

Regardless of how it has affected the new generation of artists (you can ask Pappano about that), the Gheorghiu/Alagna/Villazon imprint of rewarding unpredictable artists, doctor's notes and un-punched timecards with fat contracts drafted by opera's biggest intendants (hello The Metropolitan, Vienna Staatsoper and Salzburg) has moistened the disappointed masses, stars in their eyes turned to white dwarfs, intermissions exited for scavenged dinner. Sure, the stakes and profits aren't as big as in professional sports, so what's the incentive aside from the paycheck for singing through sickness -- Pride? Integrity? Don't ask this guy. After all, aren't these the impressionable teens of the Gung Ho generation? Ok, fair enough -- it wasn't released in Romania.

We're sure it's complicated and we'd never wish for an artist to jeopardize their long-term health, so when feverish artists show up (but not dangerously-so), we're always in awe, like what happened at last week's Der Fliegende Holländer in San Francisco that bowed against all odds -- like how Gockley canned the director (Petrika Ionesco) and revised 40% of the production kit with in-house staff and how the original Senta withdrew, citing ~illness~, which hurled American soprano Lise Lindstrom towards her house debut. Who knew that opening night had brought Lindstrom to her knees with strep throat (we didn't but they wrote about it here)? At the end of the pre-production nightmare (Mercury's in retrograde, right?) for Wagner's short-but-hairpin-curve opera, Lindstrom and Greer Grimsely in the title role both elicited favorable reviews, despite the improvised staging.

(Photos: Cory Weaver)

Vintage T&C Callas

Vintage Town & Country, February 1964. No one killed a cat eye quite as well (ok, well, maybe Audrey Hepburn).

Rebel with a Violin: David Garrett in Jewels

Flipping pages towards a profile on Lucien Freud in November Esquire UK, we locked eyes with kohl-rimmed  David Garrett. The German violinist augments his career as the face of a sterling silver jewelry line, Rebel at Heart, for Thomas Sabo.

If the snakes, dragons and skull motifs aren't exciting enough, Garrett shows off his shaved chest in the promo video below, set to an acoustic-synth Scherzo from Beethoven's Ninth.

Garrett follows fellow violinist Charlie Siem in modelling -- the latter is the latest testimonial behind Giorgio Armani's new fragrance, Eau de Nuit and was the face of Dunhill's spring 2011 ad campaign.

Grumbles over Scala's New MD Designate, Mutiny on the High Cs

It wouldn't be La Scala without cries of dissension, but when Corriere della Sera last week outed Riccardo Chailly as La Scala's incoming MD (for an outward-bound Barneboim), the orchestra's grumbles out-grumbled everyone.

Chailly had been earmarked for ages as Scala's MD even before the press leak (hello...2006?), but the orchestra's musicians are actively shelving the Gewandhaus director's name (via an internal referendum) for Fabio Luisi. They're not so much divided on the Chailly election (although they fear that Chailly's prominence abroad and his fat Decca contract could interfere with the theater's artistic choices and inflate salaries), but more displeased that they were omitted from the decision (and if you want to know the orchestra's sway, just ask Muti.)

The Chailly announcement followed recent meetings among Scala superpowers (including Milan's mayor/Scala's president Pisapia who hasn't denied the decision and is said to endorse Chailly 100%) as well as one with the orchestra's artistic committee, where it's rumored that incoming Intendant Pereira announced Chailly's directorship bound by a seven-year contract.

History repeats itself...

Let's go back to 2005, right after Stéphane Lissner took over as intendant after Riccardo Muti's thorny departure. Back then, Daniele Gatti (who OC had always heard was the incoming MD, for more reasons than just being Pereira's BFF -- reason 1, 2 and 3) and Riccardo Chailly (and Myung-Whun Chung before his unfortunate flameout) were frontrunners.

Gatti was considered a sure thing until that disastrous 2008 Don Carlo (check it). And a few years earlier, Chailly's lock-in was marred by the 2006 Aida Alagna circus. Scala kept setting them up and knocking them down until Lissner promoted Barenboim from Principal Guest Conductor to MD. While the rumors swirl, go here for a 2007 round-up of the Gatti/Chailly MD rumors.

Rolex Remembers Patrice Chéreau

Celebrations and remembrance. This past weekend at Venice's San Giorgio Maggiore island, Rolex capped the 2012-13 cycle of its Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. The program -- which matches half-a-dozen creative arts emerging talents to prominent mentors -- included French director Patrice Chéreau and young Polish theater director Michał Borczuch.

In addition to presenting Borczuch's final project, a memorial was held for Chéreau, who passed away recently at age 68. An intimate profile follows below.

Seven new members were announced for the 2014-15 cycle, which includes Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho.

Hahn & Grigolo Fête the New Annenberg Arts Center in Beverly Hills

(Hahn & Lil Buck for Saint-Saëns)

To bow her new, eponymously-named performing arts center last night in Beverly Hills, Wallis Annenberg tapped American violinist Hilary Hahn and Italian tenor(ist) Vittorio Griogolo for a fête galante sponsored by Italian luxury house Salvatore Ferragamo.

Hahn and Grigolo cashed in cultural blue chips against star wattage such as Jodi Foster, Tim Robbins, Charlize Theron and Demi Moore between performances by Kevin Spacey, Diane Lane, John Lithgow and the Martha Graham Dance Company.

Hahn joined hip-hop choreographer Lil Buck for a mashed-up version of Camille Saint-Saëns Le carnaval des animaux "Le cygne" (it's his cultural shtick, he's been at it for a while with Yo-Yo Ma here and here) while Grigolo sang Italian opera hits such as E lucean le stelle (from Lil Buck's Instagram here).

(Grigolone)

Jan Lisiecki: Precocious Child to Prodigious Teen Does L'uomo Vogue

If you blinked, you may have missed it: Jan Lisiecki has grown from a fluffy-haired preteen wonder into a lean, headstrong, eighteen-year-old soloist in a Giorgio Armani tux. The Polish-Canadian pianist spoke with L'uomo Vogue -- in total-looks Balenciaga, Doir, Valentino and Philipp Plein -- about heroes (Maurizio Pollini, Krystian Zimerman and Martha Argerich) and heretics (Pink Floyd and Enigma). Just don't call him a child prodigy:

I hate being called a child prodigy. Prodigies don't last long. I'm someone who works blindly, with the same commitments as an athlete. I simply think that I had the good fortune of finding my path immediately: to play, to perform and to travel are my greatest passions, and classical music is a huge part of my life.

Chailly for Barenboim Music Directorship at Scala in 2017

Corriere della Sera says that Riccardo Chailly will take over Barenboim's post as Music Director at La Scala in January 2017, widely rumored after Alexander Pereira was poached to take over Lissner's directorship next year.

He'll Give You the Shirt off his Back: Vittorio Grigolo in Dubai

(Lapo Elkann, Grigolo and Roberto Cavalli)

How much would you pay for Vittorio Grigolo's shirt? The Italian tenor stripped down last week (in theory) at the Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience, an event hosted by Vogue Italia's editor in chief Franca Sozzani and Mohamed Alabbar of Emaar Properties. 

At an open-air gala dinner (which fell coincidentally on Giuseppe Verdi's 200th birthday), Grigolo sang works from West Side Story and Caruso for sheiks, models and  Italian fashion house giants.

Later, Roberto Bolle danced with Petra Conti, followed by an auction to benefit Dubai Cares' outreach to children in developing countries.
 
Among auction items, Vittorio Grigolo offered the shirt off his back, which netted $40,000 USD.

Sozzani keeps Grigolo on speed dial theses days -- he recently gave a private La Scala concert during Milan Fashion Week for Vogue Italia and Condé Nast. 

Update: WWD reports:

Opera singer Vittorio Grigolo serenaded Campbell, ending the night with an impromptu auction of his shirt, which fetched $40,000. “Artists are used to being naked when we perform, so I can do without it,” he said with a laugh.

(Grigolo serenades identical twins Dean and Dan Caten of DSquared2)

(Grigolo with Clotilde Courau and Eva Cavalli)

Yesterday evening the Dubai mall witnessed History in the making. The history of unique events and moments that open up new paths and build bridges. The one put in place yesterday was indeed a bridge between East and West in the guise of an event titled Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience which, the first of its kind hosted in the Middle East, was the ultimate mix of glamour and high fashion.

 

Set against wonderful fountains and spectacular video screenings inside the Dubai Mall, the Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience shone brightly right from the opening hosted by Eva Riccobono and starring the Editor-In-Chief of Vogue Italia, Franca Sozzani, and  Mr. Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman of Emaar Properties. It was Mr. Allabbar who officially started off the event which opened with a major fashion show at the Dubai Mall Fashion Avenue. Set against a dream-like atmosphere, the creations of 8 designers - Andrea Incontri (Italy), Simone Rocha (Ireland), Ituen Basi (Nigeria), Julia Voitenko and  Daria Golevko, designers of Esme Vie (Russia), Wadha Al- Hajri (Qatar), Razan Alazzouni and Ashi Studio (Saudi Arabia) and Lulwa Al Amin (Bahrain) – were presented on the runway.



It was a 360 ° fashion experience with shopping – of course – and the numerous limited edition pieces available at the boutiques of the major fashion houses featured inside the Dubai Mall but also pure beauty on display as part of a great exhibition of couture creations (held in the Atrium near Bloomingdale’s) which paid tribute to great international couturiers like Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Armani, Valentino, Giambattista Valli, Chanel, Dior, Elie Saab, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Givenchy. Over two decades of style and elegance were chronicled and celebrated with an extraordinary exhibition of 25 years of Vogue Italia covers. Plus a unique opportunity for all the guests: become part of the history of the iconic magazine. At Souk Atrium, a major interactive photographic installation gave guests the chance to be featured on the cover of Vogue: a fun experience that made the Dubai’s Fashion Night even more magic and special.

Past, present but also lots of future with regard to green initiatives at The Waterfall Atrium. The numerous guests that took part in the evening had the chance to gain an insight on the evolution of fashion with an eco-sustainable soul thanks to video installations and shorts presenting projects like the Green Carpet Challenge by Livia Firth, Carmina Campus, Alcantara, Edun+Diesel, the British Fashion Council’s Estethica and admire the eco-friendly creations designed by brands like Christopher Raeburn, Organic by John Patrick and The North Circular by Lily Cole as well as the works of up-and-coming designers selected as part of Vogue Italia’s Scouting Manifesto initiative.

 

Grand final, during the night, with the gala event that gathered famous names of the world of fashion, high dignitaries and iconic protagonists of the world of art and of showbusiness. A magic event, that has been held at the foot of Burj Khalifa, with a breath-taking view on the impressive fountains of the Dubai Mall, and that has been enriched by a performance by famous tenor Vittorio Grigolo, and a touching dance performance by Roberto Bolle. During the night, a charity auction has been held, too; its proceeds, together with the proceeds of sale of VFDE limited edition products, have been given to Dubai Cares, a charity organization founded by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, that helps children living in developing countries to have access to primary education.

During the auction, numerous and incredible experiences have been sold, as they have been given especially for this occasion. Experiences included a gold Medusa Pendant with diamonds, and an invitation for two people at the 2014/15 Autumn/Winter fashion show (both given by Versace); a weekend for two people in St. Moritz, with exclusive ski classes and a double ski suits (given by Moncler).

There also are an invitation for two people in a five-stars hotel in Cannes, for the annual dinner For The Love Of The Cinema, that is held during the film festival, given by IWC Schaffhausen (together with the two iconic watches Portofino Automatic, in red gold for her, and Portofino Hand-Wound Big Date, in white gold for him); a "Roberto Cavalli Experience" that, besides an invitation to the 2014/15 Autumn/Winter fashion show (with access to the backstage), also includes two exclusive dinners for two people, as well as some precious creations by the maison; furthermore, Valentino offered the creation of a unique and tailor-made dress (together with the opportunity to follow the creative process and to visit the atelier).

For the auction, Levant gave a very precious Quinting watch, while Chanel offered an invitation for the Haute Couture 2014 fashion show, and the opportunity to visit the private apartment of Gabrielle Chanel, at 31, rue Cambon.

A full tailoring experience has been offered by Burberry for the auction: an handmade suit for man, an invitation for two people at the Menswear autumn/winter 2014/15 fashion show in London, and a stay for two people at the Claridges Hotel, together with a shopping experience at the flagship store in 121, Regent street.

Giorgio Armani gave two invitations for his autumn/winter 2014/15 fashion show, with a VIP access to the backstage and a stay for two nights at the Armani Hotel, with a dinner for two people at Nobu. Last but not least, Vogue Italia offered a unique and exclusive experience: the auction winner will be lead in a shopping tour through the best boutiques of Milan together with the iconic stylist of our magazine, Enrica Ponzellini.

 

Together with Editor-in-chief of Vogue Italia Franca Sozzani and Mr. Mohamed Alabbar, President of Emaar Properties, the event has been attended by Philipp Plein, Lapo Elkann, Riccardo Tisci, Nicola Maramotti, Remo and Francesca Ruffini, Eva and Roberto Cavalli, Naomi Campbell, Karolína Kurková, Donatella Versace, Afef Jnifen.

- See more at: http://www.vogue.it/en/shows/fashion-events/2013/10/vogue-fashion-dubai-experience-event#sthash.TAmazEpr.dpuf

Yesterday evening the Dubai mall witnessed History in the making. The history of unique events and moments that open up new paths and build bridges. The one put in place yesterday was indeed a bridge between East and West in the guise of an event titled Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience which, the first of its kind hosted in the Middle East, was the ultimate mix of glamour and high fashion.

 

Set against wonderful fountains and spectacular video screenings inside the Dubai Mall, the Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience shone brightly right from the opening hosted by Eva Riccobono and starring the Editor-In-Chief of Vogue Italia, Franca Sozzani, and  Mr. Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman of Emaar Properties. It was Mr. Allabbar who officially started off the event which opened with a major fashion show at the Dubai Mall Fashion Avenue. Set against a dream-like atmosphere, the creations of 8 designers - Andrea Incontri (Italy), Simone Rocha (Ireland), Ituen Basi (Nigeria), Julia Voitenko and  Daria Golevko, designers of Esme Vie (Russia), Wadha Al- Hajri (Qatar), Razan Alazzouni and Ashi Studio (Saudi Arabia) and Lulwa Al Amin (Bahrain) – were presented on the runway.



It was a 360 ° fashion experience with shopping – of course – and the numerous limited edition pieces available at the boutiques of the major fashion houses featured inside the Dubai Mall but also pure beauty on display as part of a great exhibition of couture creations (held in the Atrium near Bloomingdale’s) which paid tribute to great international couturiers like Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Armani, Valentino, Giambattista Valli, Chanel, Dior, Elie Saab, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Givenchy. Over two decades of style and elegance were chronicled and celebrated with an extraordinary exhibition of 25 years of Vogue Italia covers. Plus a unique opportunity for all the guests: become part of the history of the iconic magazine. At Souk Atrium, a major interactive photographic installation gave guests the chance to be featured on the cover of Vogue: a fun experience that made the Dubai’s Fashion Night even more magic and special.

Past, present but also lots of future with regard to green initiatives at The Waterfall Atrium. The numerous guests that took part in the evening had the chance to gain an insight on the evolution of fashion with an eco-sustainable soul thanks to video installations and shorts presenting projects like the Green Carpet Challenge by Livia Firth, Carmina Campus, Alcantara, Edun+Diesel, the British Fashion Council’s Estethica and admire the eco-friendly creations designed by brands like Christopher Raeburn, Organic by John Patrick and The North Circular by Lily Cole as well as the works of up-and-coming designers selected as part of Vogue Italia’s Scouting Manifesto initiative.

 

Grand final, during the night, with the gala event that gathered famous names of the world of fashion, high dignitaries and iconic protagonists of the world of art and of showbusiness. A magic event, that has been held at the foot of Burj Khalifa, with a breath-taking view on the impressive fountains of the Dubai Mall, and that has been enriched by a performance by famous tenor Vittorio Grigolo, and a touching dance performance by Roberto Bolle. During the night, a charity auction has been held, too; its proceeds, together with the proceeds of sale of VFDE limited edition products, have been given to Dubai Cares, a charity organization founded by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, that helps children living in developing countries to have access to primary education.

During the auction, numerous and incredible experiences have been sold, as they have been given especially for this occasion. Experiences included a gold Medusa Pendant with diamonds, and an invitation for two people at the 2014/15 Autumn/Winter fashion show (both given by Versace); a weekend for two people in St. Moritz, with exclusive ski classes and a double ski suits (given by Moncler).

There also are an invitation for two people in a five-stars hotel in Cannes, for the annual dinner For The Love Of The Cinema, that is held during the film festival, given by IWC Schaffhausen (together with the two iconic watches Portofino Automatic, in red gold for her, and Portofino Hand-Wound Big Date, in white gold for him); a "Roberto Cavalli Experience" that, besides an invitation to the 2014/15 Autumn/Winter fashion show (with access to the backstage), also includes two exclusive dinners for two people, as well as some precious creations by the maison; furthermore, Valentino offered the creation of a unique and tailor-made dress (together with the opportunity to follow the creative process and to visit the atelier).

For the auction, Levant gave a very precious Quinting watch, while Chanel offered an invitation for the Haute Couture 2014 fashion show, and the opportunity to visit the private apartment of Gabrielle Chanel, at 31, rue Cambon.

A full tailoring experience has been offered by Burberry for the auction: an handmade suit for man, an invitation for two people at the Menswear autumn/winter 2014/15 fashion show in London, and a stay for two people at the Claridges Hotel, together with a shopping experience at the flagship store in 121, Regent street.

Giorgio Armani gave two invitations for his autumn/winter 2014/15 fashion show, with a VIP access to the backstage and a stay for two nights at the Armani Hotel, with a dinner for two people at Nobu. Last but not least, Vogue Italia offered a unique and exclusive experience: the auction winner will be lead in a shopping tour through the best boutiques of Milan together with the iconic stylist of our magazine, Enrica Ponzellini.

 

Together with Editor-in-chief of Vogue Italia Franca Sozzani and Mr. Mohamed Alabbar, President of Emaar Properties, the event has been attended by Philipp Plein, Lapo Elkann, Riccardo Tisci, Nicola Maramotti, Remo and Francesca Ruffini, Eva and Roberto Cavalli, Naomi Campbell, Karolína Kurková, Donatella Versace, Afef Jnifen.

- See more at: http://www.vogue.it/en/shows/fashion-events/2013/10/vogue-fashion-dubai-experience-event#sthash.TAmazEpr.dpuf

Vezzoli's Museum of Crying Women Exhibition with Callas

Maria Callas is among the iconic divas (re)immortalized by Gagosian Gallery sweetheart Francesco Vezzoli in his Museum of Cyring Women exhibition, now showing at the QMA Gallery in Qatar. The Italian artist embroidered tears on portraits of haughty & naughty divas such as Callas, Joan Crawford and Liz Taylor to symbolize leading ladies' larger-than-life emotions. Because, you know: art.

Il Cigno di Busseto: 200 Years in Verdi's Shadow

All is noble and tender, everything speaks of love, nothing recalls the ugliness of civilization.

That whiner Stendhal could turn a beautiful phrase, like in his 1839 The Charterhouse of Parma as young Italian noble Fabrice del Dongo, enchanted by the (fictionalized) cities of the Farneses and the Piacenzas.

We too were entranced last week from those secret little gems on the low misty plains and flat farmlands of Emilia-Romagna -- Zibello, Soragna, Fontanelle, Le Roncole -- those Parmense postage stamps where the weather vacillates so peculiar between curative dry winds and blinding moist fogs, the latter so milked-out that you risk to drive your rental car into a 16th century castle moat, ther former responsible for cured legs of Parma ham. And really, not much has changed from the time that Giovanni Boldini created the Gazzetta di Parma's timeless font (which still titles the daily journal) between portraits of jaunty Verdi in a top hat and silk scarf.

We came in search of Verdi over le terre verdiane, but we found so much more: the dusty cities that churned out High Renaissance Mannerists Correggio and Parmigianino; the good duchess of Parma Marie Louise and her fresh violets; Acqua di Parma and its classic 1916 Colonia scent; local lambrusco and mavalsia drunk from thick porcelain bowls. Zibello, the capital of culatello, untouched but admired for the trophy skill mid-October to mid-February where lean cuts of pork are folded over wooden boards. Formentino cows, milky vessels of that perfect balance of proteins and fats, and vacca rossa with its distinctive red mantle mulling chamomile over lands, between the Apennines and the River Po.

(The bed where Verdi was born, with a bunch of roses left by the Club of the 27.)

Terre Verdiane begins in Roncole Verdi at the Italian scribe's birthhouse where he was born on October 10, 1813. The house with its gabled, steeply-sloped roof is on a corner off a main road in the tiny hamlet Roncole Verdi, renamed from Roncole in 1963. Inside, it has been renovated so many times that what must have been slanted, earth-stained floors are now clean, cut lines and the spacious quarters, used as an inn by Verdi's parents, feels really young. (More renovations are schedule and it will be closed on November 4 -- visits can be booked on the weekends.)

(Verdi's access to get to the organ, no wonder they needed a 9-year-old)

Across the street is a piazza, crowned by San Michele Arcangelo church where Verdi was baptised and played the organ at age nine. A year later, his family moved to the more lively, less rural Busseto.

Busseto's rung by a main square (Piazza Giuseppe Verdi, ovvio), with views of the matchbox Teatro Giuseppe Verdi, Carlo Bergonzi's I Due Foscari B&B and Casa Barezzi with a main road lined in shops and restaurants that runs down to the Museo Nazionale Giuseppe Verdi at Villa Pallavicino, and past Verdi mecca Palazzo Orlandi, which no one has bought since we wrote about it a year ago and will most likely be snatched up by a foreign buyer. C'mon Italy...Forza Verdi.

Verdi moved into Casa Barezzi in 1831, which was owned by his first patron, Antonio Barezzi, whose daughter Margherita he married in 1836 (who later died along with their two young children). Barezzi also hosted the orchestra he founded in 1816, the Societa' Filarmonica Busetana. He died in 1867 and Verdi famously wrote in his letters that he owed Barezzi everything for his generosity and open-heartedness. "He loved me as a son and I loved him as my father."

Casa Barezzi's insanely excellent, well-preserved collection of historic scores, journals and playbills was only made open to the public in 2001 during the centenary of Verdi's death. If you had to choose just one Verdi collection to visit -- this one wins, hands down.

A quick lunch at the amazing Storica Salsamenteria Baratta and off to Museo Nazionale Giuseppe Verdi at Villa Pallavicino, which recreated Verdi opera with art history narratives.

The last stop was Sant'Agata where Verdi escaped the rumor mill of Busseto when he shacked up with his future second wife, Giuseppina Strepponi, before they were married. Here he cultivated gardens, wells, grapevines and a lake, and bred livestock.

 

Click the link below to see many many many more photos...

Before Verdi, Parma's Musical Legacy Ran Mad Deep

By the time Verdi showed up to the party (exactly 200 years ago today!), the burly Farnese dukes of Parma and Piacenza had already carved out a musical identity for the city, like theaters where they could air out their hereditary jewels and furs and avoid eye contact with the un-furred, un-jeweled masses.

Parma's Casa della Musica and Museo dell'Opera, in Piazzale San Francesco tell its long story -- from Pier Luigi Farnese in the early 16th century down to Ranuccio II Farnese in the mid-17th century -- and then up to modern day with Teatro Regio di Parma.

(Rossini, Bellini, Ricci, Mercadente, Donizetti)

(la Grisi)

It's also where most documentation of Teatro Farnese is on display, which we later visited at Palazzo Pilota, which includes the National Gallery, the National Archaeological Museum, the Palatina library and the Bodoni Museum.

The Farnese Theater was built between 1618 & 1619 as a salle d'armes under the order of Ranuccio I, Duke of Parma and Piacenza. On 1628, it was inaugurated as a theater for the wedding between Margherita de' Medidic and Duke Odoardo Farnese with Mercurio e Marte by Claudio Achillini set to Claudio Monteverdi.

It's been used sparingly since then, destroyed in 1944 and later rebuilt in 1956. It was rumored that this October, Abbado would conduct a massive Messa da Requiem for Festival Verdi, but it never appeared on the playbill. Trompe l'oeil turns wood and plaster beams into marble and bronze.

Our last stop was the Museo Casa Natale Arturo Toscanini where the Italian maestro was born in 1867. The small house is full of personal effects from Toscanini's New York and Milan homes (via Durini) including those famous black and white portraits by Robert Hupka. No photos were allowed but we have fond memories of its exuberant head curator, Nicola Luberto, who lives and breathes Toscanini.

Slow Food, Slow Opera: Made in Italy Excellence at Teatro Regio di Parma Festival Verdi

Who believes in miracles? Teatro Regio di Parma. You see, this year's Festival Verdi signifies more than just a proper bicentennial birth-year bash for Emilia-Romagna’s scribe, Giuseppe Verdi. It's an auspice – Homer/Virgil bird signs in the empty sky – against all odds, despite years of dire budget woes and reshuffling of the theater's leadership in the aftermath of a mindboggling government corruption scandal that left the city 800 million euros in debt, this year’s Festival Verdi bowed, miraculously, on September 30 with rare symphonic treats under Riccardo Chailly and Filarmonica della Scala.

Stage decked in white rose topiary bundles, the scruffy-bearded Milanese conductor, (who's about to drop a new recording of Brahms symphonies with his Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) carved clean phrases from creamy cellos and scalding strings, treating Vespri’s Four Seasons like an undercut, century-old precious gem (a lost artform, now that bling dictates a diamond's currency), in an understated approach coveted by Parma’s Verdi-worshipping public.

OC’s got a seven-year litmus of Italy’s most historic houses and has heard the domestic audience at its best and worst behavior: cheers, whistles, slurs and insults for opera legends and conducting giants by adoring/murderous ticketholders. On Monday night a heartfelt "Viva Verdi" punctured the silence as Chailly steadied the Filarmonia for the first “La Forza” overture, followed by a collective sigh of disappointment when scores were gathered by an exiting Filarmonia without granting a second bis.

(19th century costume during the time of Maria Luisa of Parma, foyer of Teatro Regio di Parma)

That palpable passion is why Parma's Teatro Regio enchants despite its second-tier rank. What’s it mean? Between 13-15 Italian opera houses (the numbers fluctuate) are classified as ‘enti lirici’ -- government-financed, heavily-unionized, opera house foundations, like mighty La Scala, historic San Carlo di Napoli and proud Teatro dell'Opera di Roma that enjoy financial and legal benefits under the protective enti lirici umbrella.

But Teatro Regio di Parma is a ‘teatro di tradizione’, so while its enti lirici opera buddies (like Torino, Bologna and Venice) receive between 13-18 million earmarked euros annually, it only gets 1.5 million euros -- and still manages to maintain a stellar artistic reputation, a high media profile and loggione cults.

Would the theater benefit from ‘ento lirico’ status? Maybe. But in these lean, problematic years, it’s been abandoned as they must have an in-house orchestra and a stable chorus to qualify, now impossible, as they use a flexible, debut-caressing freelance structure with Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini.

On occasion of Verdi’s bicentennial birth year anniversary, a funding uptick helped organize a Festival Verdi of +50 events: interviews with Verdi protagonists such as Freni & Kabaivanska, two gala concerts and three operas (including a new I masnadieri). Yet one year ago, not a single bullet-point of this year’s festival had been conceptualized, the city reeling from a massive corruption scandal and a loss of 800 million euro by its then-mayor and dozens of officemates that left the theater abandoned and neglected by the city’s economic powers. (FYI, the 2014 season of three operas and one concert will be announced on October 31.)

Things are slowly improving: Parma’s new mayor, Federico Pizzarotti, brought in a new Teatro Regio intendant, Carlo Fontana, and AD Paolo Arca’ (both who've held positions at La Scala), and artists who collaborate understand that (often last-minute) contracts are signed under new economic conditions.

On Oct. 1, Festival Verdi bowed its first opera title, Simon Boccanegra in Hugo de Ana's 2004 Festival Verdi production, grandly attended by Parmigiani and Parnese VIPs. In an age where gimmick and controversy have become directorial selling points, de Ana’s cool-touch direction was off-trend -- subservient and respectful to the libretto/score -- bound by floor-to-ceiling proto-Renaissance panels carved in Old Testament friezes that rearranged to evoke the prologue's Genova square, Act I's Grimaldi Palace seaside garden and the Doge's chambers. 

On the podium, Jader Bignamini led the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini through smooth water, clean in gesture and color wash. Teatro Regio di Parma chorus, costumed in de Ana’s rich, dark leathers, chainmails and velvets embroidered in jewels and studs, simply charmed. A well-matched cast (Marco Caria as a charismatic Paolo) was anchored by an austere Fiesco (Giacomo Prestia) and a dignified Doge (Roberto Frontali) for a heartbreaking "Piango perchè mi parla..." Diego Torre’s Adorno mastered striking acuti between some uneveness, and despite bullet-proof technique and sweet color, Carmela Remigio’s Amelia lacked Verdian heft.

Past the theater’s 19th century neoclassical colonnade aerated by ionic columns, over cobblestone streets, Parma’s shop windows have been decorated with chocolate Verdi busts and top hats, and bar menus feature commemorative cocktails, but unlike Vienna/Mozart and Bayreuth/Wagner, it’s powered by passion, not commerce -- Made in Italy, for Italy (and us Verdi lovers).

(Teatro Regio di Parma, day and night)

(Ridotto Toscanini)

Patrice Chéreau: 1944 - 2013

The French opera director Patrice Chéreau (among so many more talents) has passed away. His 1976 Ring Cycle for Bayreuth with Boulez broke the mold. OC was lucky to have seen his Janáček From the House of the Dead at La Scala and The Metropolitan Opera (here and here), both in indelible direction, in addition to his Tristan und Isolde at Scala (here and here).

The NYCO Dissolution and Aftermath

When the listing cruise liner, NYCOncordia, appealed for a $1 million Kickstarter patch last month, we called it fair game, despite its detached & passionless marketing approach that made no attempt at a meaningful connection with its check-writing public (or PayPal transferring public).

But it why should it have? We're not convinced that NYCO was convinced that such a steep sum was attainable from it's proletarian, grassroots public, unlike The Metropolitan Opera's white knights straddling its many-millions white stallions. So here's our #surprisedface when, 22 days later, the experimental fundsourcing project failed and NYCO filed for bankruptcy.

Now comes the unwieldy aftermath of the star-crossed organization whose Kickstarter attempt brilliantly, narcissistically shifted the "I" to the "You" -- the audience (or obviously, lack of audience at 2,108 backers pledging a total of $301k) -- and rewrote its demise with a morally-ambiguous shrug -- after all, whose fault is it really if the public couldn't toss down the $1 million lifeline? The léger de main may be why some are just. really. super. cranky. about the ungraceful exit, like Manuela Hoelterhoff, who digs in for Bloomberg.

Peter Dobrin at the Inquirer surmises that a bureaucratic slash & burn will lay a new groundwork for NYCO 2: The Reawakening. Hopefully its Act II prelude will be more graceful than its Act I finale. 

OC in September Print: Auditorium Magazine & Opera Now Magazine -- Pisaroni, Naples & Verona

OC loves her opera/performing arts glossies so much that she would sucker-punch a shark's toothy snout if he tried to swim off with them. (No Animals Were Harmed ® in the making this metaphor.)

This summer, between G&Ts at Armani's 7th floor masculine-grey lounge (with Monkey 47 Schwarzwald, Mr. Armani's favorite gin) and rosemary mint juleps, OC escaped Milan's oppressive heat to even more oppressively-steamy domestic cities -- Naples and Verona -- on behalf of her beloved, darling glossies.

For Auditorium Magazine, we spent a couple sweltering, fragrant days in jolly Naples at the historic, opulent Teatro di San Carlo for the world premiere of NYC-based Chinese choreographer Shen Wei's Carmina Burana, the ubiquitous Carl Orff scenic cantata that's been spun into hilarious parodies (like 'Gopher Tuna'). For more vicarious adventures, follow the Ed-in-Chief's rich travels through its official twitter account. PDF here. O fortuna!

For Opera Now Magazine, we put on Balenciaga silk and Jil Sander heels for the Fondazione Arena di Verona's 100th birthday celebration on August 10th, the feast day of San Lorenzo marked by Perseid meteor showers, la notte di stelle cadenti. Onstage, a century-old art deco Aida by 20th century architect Ettore Fagiuoli rolled out under shooting stars. PDF here and here. 

We also chatted with spirited Italian bass-baritone, Luca Pisaroni, who was raised in Verdi’s hometown of Busseto, and despite the dearth of native Verdian bass-baritones (let's face it, tenors, too), he's only sung in Italy four times since his international debut in 2002 (Salzburg, Don Giovanni Masetto). In fluent English that bubbled with sardonic Italian wit, he spoke about his absence from his native 'terre verdiane', especially during this 200th bicentennial Verdi birth year, with the exception of a one-off Verdi Gala held in Busseto's sweet Piazza Verdi in June, where he sang against father-in-law Thomas Hampson. PDF here.

Now, go support your opera and performing arts magazines with digital and print subscriptions.

The First (Verdi) Rule of The Club of the Twenty-Seven Is:

You do not talk about the Club of the 27. Member's names are subjugated by one of Verdi's 27 operas. These are the rigorous Verdi super-fans who eat Scala's loggionisti for breakfast, with a side of spallacotta.

The Parma-based group, that counts modern-day Verdi protagonists such as Leo Nucci and Carlo Bergonzi as idols, meets every October 10th at the foot of Parma's Verdi Monument at Palazzo della Pilotta to sing 'Va Pensiero' with a small orchestra in homage to the Busseto Swan's birthday.  

The work (with its lion-lashed chariot and Verdi flanked by mythological graces) is the largest remaining piece of a sprawling marble monument built in 1920 in homage to Giuseppe Verdi that stood at the Parma train station on Via Verdi (photo here). Damaged in WWII, it was razed, scattered and partially destroyed post-1945. While intact, its triumphal arches were adorned with 28 statues dedicated to each of Verdi's 27 operas, plus the Requiem Mass. Only nine statues remain, housed at the Arena del Sole in Roccabianca, although the National Gallery of Parma has architectural sketches of all twenty-eight.

(OC's photos of the monument from a recent Parma trip)