For opera fans in the New York City area, the Metropolitan Opera is offering free screenings of ten productions originally broadcast during the first three seasons of its series, The Met Live in HD. The operas will run on ten consecutive nights, shown outside on the Lincoln Center Plaza, weather permitting. There are 2800 seats available on a first come, first served basis, so plan to arrive early! The schedule after the jump:

Read the rest of this entry »

The final installment of the 2008-2009 season in The Met: Live in HD series will be a production of Rossini’s 1817 comedy, La Cenerentola, his retelling of the Cinderella story. The supernatural elements are gone — there is no Fairy Godmother and no pumpkin coach — but the humor with which Rossini invests the music is magic enough. The production features Latvian coloratura mezzo-soprano Elína Garanca as Angelina, “la cenerentola,” with American tenor Lawrence Brownlee as Don Ramiro, the Prince.

The live transmission of La Cenerentola will be on Saturday, May 9, starting at 12:30 pm (ET), with an encore broadcast on Wednesday, May 20, at 7:00 pm (local time) in the US, and on Saturday, May 23, at 12:30 pm (EST) in Canada. (Not all theatres showing the live transmission will participate in an encore showing.) Check your local theatre listings for details, or check out the Met’s website.

The series, The Met Live in HD, this year includes not only live operatic performances, but a documentary film. The Audition, a feature-length film directed by Susan Froemke, follows the finalists through their last week in the preparations for the 2007 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, the most prestigious American singing competition, one that has launched the careers of many singers who have gone on to international stardom, including Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson, Susan Graham, Ben Heppner, Deborah Voight, Nathan Gunn, Stephanie Blythe, and Samuel Ramey.

While The Audition bears some resemblance to the competition reality shows that have become a national obsession — behind-the-scenes interviews with the contestants that include surprising self revelations, the uneasy mix of camaraderie and competitiveness among the contestants, the anxiety of competing and the agonizing wait to hear the outcome, the judges’ frank deliberations about the performers — this is a far classier enterprise. The biggest difference is the attitude of the hosts, who on TV ramp up the anxiety and drama by relentlessly reminding the contestants that someone is going be eliminated, and that at the end, anyone could be publicly humiliated by the judges by having every flaw of their presentation exposed, often with barely contained contempt or malicious glee. Here, the staff of the Metropolitan Opera works tirelessly with the singers during the week between the semi-finals and finals with the sincere desire to help every competitor achieve his or her highest potential. The 11 finalists are treated with the utmost respect and are constantly reminded that regardless of the outcome, anyone who has made it this far has extraordinary talent and discipline. (Even Renée Fleming had to compete three times before she won.) The warmly personal nurturing that the singers receive from conductor Marco Armiliato, vocal coach Carrie-Anne Matheson, and other Met staffers is a testimony to their desire to help each of the singers succeed.

Froemke homes in especially on the stories of seven of the singers, and suspense is created by knowing that there can only be five or six winners, wondering how any of these incredible artists and individuals could possibly not win. She focuses on three of the tenors, each with a distinctive voice, story, and personality. Michael Fabiano is intensely driven and moody, characteristics that fit his Italianate performance of Lensky’s aria from Eugene Onegin perfectly. Alek Shrader’s easy-going confidence and charm give him the mischievous bravado ideally suited to “Ah, Mes Amis,” from La Fille du Régiment, an aria notorious for its nine high C’s, which he learned in less than a week and nailed with apparent effortlessness. The oldest contestant at 30, Ryan Smith, optimistic and engaging in the face of much adversity, was making a last attempt at an operatic career, and amazed himself with the passion and poise he brought to “E la solita storia del pastor,” from Cilea’s L’Arlesiana. (The tragic postscript to the film is that Smith, after making his professional debut at the Met, succumbed to cancer last fall.)

The Audition will be released on DVD this summer and ought to be of interest to any opera lover, not only for the beautiful singing, but for the vivid glimpse it gives of the world behind the curtain.

Watch the trailer for the film.

The penultimate installment in The Met in HD series for the season is not the live broadcast of an opera, but The Audition, a documentary film chronicling young singers at the early stages of their careers. The full-length film, by Susan Froemke (associate producer of the legendary Grey Gardens), focuses on the final days of the 2007 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, in which eleven finalists prepare for the last round in one of the world’s most prestigious singing competitions. Renee Fleming, who was once a participant in the competition, hosts the documentary, which follows the personal stories that led these talented and ambitious young artists to this important landmark in their careers, and which captures the outstanding last round performances.

Read the rest of this entry »

The next installment in The Met: Live in HD series will be a new production of La Sonnambula, Vincenzo Bellini’s gentle1831 pastoral comedy about a young woman who finds herself in hot water with her fiancé when she sleepwalks into the wrong man’s bedroom. The slim plot has kept the opera from becoming a staple of the repertoire, but it’s full of delightful music, and in the hands of the right performers it can be a real charmer. This production features soprano Natalie Dessay and tenor Juan Diego Flórez, who are vocally ideal for the bel canto repertoire, and who created real electricity in last year’s La Fille du Régiment. The controversial production by Mary Zimmerman moves the action to the present and sets it in the rehearsal space of an opera company rehearsing for a performance of La Sonnambula. It’s guaranteed to be a fresh and intriguing take on the opera.
 
The live transmission of La Sonnambula will be on Saturday, March 21, starting at 1:00 pm (ET), with an encore broadcast on Wednesday, April 1, at 7:00 pm (local time) in the US, and Saturday, April 25 in Canada. Check your local theatre listings for details, or check out the Met’s website.

Word came from Oslo, Norway that Anne Wiggins Brown, the singer who created the role of Bess in the first, 1935 production of George and Ira Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess, passed away on March 13 at the age of 96. Brown was the last surviving member of the original Porgy and Bess production, and this seems like a good opportunity to revisit some of the key participants in the first Porgy and Bess, to honor their memory and overall contribution.

Read the rest of this entry »

The next installment in The Met: Live in HD series will be a revival of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, one of the most beloved operas in the repertoire. The production, by British filmmaker Anthony Minghella, has been an audience favorite since the Met introduced it in 2006. Working with a team that included his wife, choreographer Caroline Choa, set designer Michael Levine, and costume designer Han Feng, Minghella created a production much praised for its stunning visual images, and staging that is innovative while remaining faithful to the opera. Patricia Racette stars as Cio-Cio-San, with Marcello Giordano as Pinkerton, and Patrick Summers conducts.

The live transmission of Madama Butterfly will be on Saturday, March 7, starting at 1:00 pm (ET). Such demand is anticipated that there will be two encore broadcasts, on Wednesday, March 18, and Thursday, March 19, at 7:00 pm (local time). Check your local theater listings for details or check out the Met’s website.

The next installment in The Met: Live in HD series will be a revival of Lucia di Lammermoor, Gaetano Donizetti’s dramatic version of Sir Walter Scott’s novel. Since its premiere in 1835, Lucia has been a favorite of audiences and performers and has a secure spot in the core repertoire. Its sextet and the heroine’s mad scene are among the most popular moments in opera.

Anna Netrebko stars as Lucia, with Mariusz Kwiecien as her brother Enrico. Rolando Villazón had been scheduled to appear as Lucia’s lover Edgardo, but Villazón has become ill, and will be replaced by Polish tenor Piotr Beczala. Director Mary Zimmerman moves the era to the mid-19th century, and her production emphasizes the element of gothic horror in the story. Marco Armiliato conducts the performance.

The live transmission of Lucia di Lammermoor will be on Saturday, February 7, starting at 1:00 pm (ET), with an encore broadcast on Wednesday, February 18, at 7:00 pm (local time). Check your local theater listings for details or check out the Met’s website.