Jared wrote:Very pleased to say that I have over the past few days managed to attend an Opera double bill...
Handel's Julius Caesar (Live from the Met) on Saturday night at the Hereford Courtyard, followed by Verdi's Nabucco (Live from the ROH) last night in Worcester... both greatly enjoyed, to be fair...
I am glad that you enjoyed your Opera experiences Jared and coincidentally I was listening to some Verdi recently....
To be is to do: Socrates
To do is to be: Sartre
Do be do be do: Sinatra
I have a small group of Residents living at Watkins Court who enjoy the occasional opera, but because of their age, don't get out to see any these days, so I have made the suggestion of forming a little Opera Appreciation Group, so that we can watch one a month together and learn from each other. They seem taken with the idea and are looking to add wine and nibbles, so I have devised them a programme of viewings in my lounge. This is what I've sent them:
Watkins Court ‘Opera Group’
Programme May – Dec 2013
2nd Wednesdays in Month, 6.30pm.
May 15th : Purcell – ‘Dido & Aeneas’ (59 + 13 mins)
Sarah Connolly (Dido), Lucas Meacham (Aeneas), Lucy Crowe (Belinda)
Conductor: Christopher Hogwood, Director: Wayne McGregor. Venue: Royal Opera (2009)
June 12th : Puccini – ‘Tosca’ (119 mins)
Fiorenza Cedolins (Tosca), Marcelo Alvarez (Cavaradossi), Ruggero Raimondi (Scarpia)
Conductor: Daniel Oren, Director: Hudo de Ana. Venue: Arena de Verona (2006)
July 10th : Tchaikovsky – ‘Eugene Onegin’ (156 mins)
Renee Fleming (Tatiana), Dmitri Hvorostovsky (Onegin), Ramon Vargas (Lenski)
Conductor: Valery Gergiev, Director: Peter McClintock. Venue: Met, New York (2007)
August 14th : Donizetti – ‘Don Pasquale’ (132 mins)
Anna Netrebko (Norina), John Del Carlo (Don Pasquale), Matthew Polenzani (Ernesto)
Conductor: James Levine, Director: Gary Halvorson. Venue: Met, New York (2010)
September 11th : Beethoven – ‘Fidelio’ (146 mins)
Melanie Diener (Fidelio), Roberto Sacca (Florestan), Kresimir Strazanac (Don Fernando)
Conductor: Bernard Haitink, Director: Katharina Thalbach, Venue: Zurich Opera (2008)
October 9th : Verdi – ‘Rigoletto’ (128 mins)
Leo Nucci (Rigoletto), Elena Mosuc (Gilda), Piotr Beczala (Duke of Mantova)
Conductor: Nello Santi, Director: Gilbert Deflo, Venue: Zurich Opera (2006)
November 13th : Bizet – ‘Carmen’ (152 mins)
Anna Caterina Antonacci (Carmen), Jonas Kaufmann (Don Jose), I. D’Arcangelo (Escamillo)
Conductor: Antonio Pappano, Director: Francesca Zambello, Venue: Royal Opera (2006)
December 11th : Rossini – ‘Il Barbiere di Siviglia’ (159 mins)
Juan Diego Flores (d’Almaviva), Maria Bayo (Rosina), Pietro Spagnoli (Figaro)
Conductor: Gianluigi Gelmetti, Director: Emilio Sagi, Venue: Teatro Real, Madrid (2005)
Hi lads,
I have been "out of sorts" of late, primarily as a result of a car accident. Our car was stationary at a red light when an eejit ran into the back of us in his Ford van, our car is a write off, my lovely wife is shaken but is otherwise okay and yours truly has whiplash, so I haven't spent much time online and merely visit Facebook from time to time in the evenings. I am in work am fine, poor and browned off!
Anyway, I was prompted to return and post a response to Jared's lovely, heart-warming message on his plans for opera nights with the residents, that is a splendid idea. Jared, I hope that you get a great response to it, well done.
Talk soon.
Seán
"To appreciate the greatness of the Masters is to keep faith in the greatness of humanity." - Wilhelm Furtwängler
Jared wrote:I have a small group of Residents living at Watkins Court who enjoy the occasional opera, but because of their age, don't get out to see any these days, so I have made the suggestion of forming a little Opera Appreciation Group, so that we can watch one a month together and learn from each other. They seem taken with the idea and are looking to add wine and nibbles, so I have devised them a programme of viewings in my lounge. This is what I've sent them:
Watkins Court ‘Opera Group’
Programme May – Dec 2013
2nd Wednesdays in Month, 6.30pm.
May 15th : Purcell – ‘Dido & Aeneas’ (59 + 13 mins)
Sarah Connolly (Dido), Lucas Meacham (Aeneas), Lucy Crowe (Belinda)
Conductor: Christopher Hogwood, Director: Wayne McGregor. Venue: Royal Opera (2009)
June 12th : Puccini – ‘Tosca’ (119 mins)
Fiorenza Cedolins (Tosca), Marcelo Alvarez (Cavaradossi), Ruggero Raimondi (Scarpia)
Conductor: Daniel Oren, Director: Hudo de Ana. Venue: Arena de Verona (2006)
July 10th : Tchaikovsky – ‘Eugene Onegin’ (156 mins)
Renee Fleming (Tatiana), Dmitri Hvorostovsky (Onegin), Ramon Vargas (Lenski)
Conductor: Valery Gergiev, Director: Peter McClintock. Venue: Met, New York (2007)
August 14th : Donizetti – ‘Don Pasquale’ (132 mins)
Anna Netrebko (Norina), John Del Carlo (Don Pasquale), Matthew Polenzani (Ernesto)
Conductor: James Levine, Director: Gary Halvorson. Venue: Met, New York (2010)
September 11th : Beethoven – ‘Fidelio’ (146 mins)
Melanie Diener (Fidelio), Roberto Sacca (Florestan), Kresimir Strazanac (Don Fernando)
Conductor: Bernard Haitink, Director: Katharina Thalbach, Venue: Zurich Opera (2008)
October 9th : Verdi – ‘Rigoletto’ (128 mins)
Leo Nucci (Rigoletto), Elena Mosuc (Gilda), Piotr Beczala (Duke of Mantova)
Conductor: Nello Santi, Director: Gilbert Deflo, Venue: Zurich Opera (2006)
November 13th : Bizet – ‘Carmen’ (152 mins)
Anna Caterina Antonacci (Carmen), Jonas Kaufmann (Don Jose), I. D’Arcangelo (Escamillo)
Conductor: Antonio Pappano, Director: Francesca Zambello, Venue: Royal Opera (2006)
December 11th : Rossini – ‘Il Barbiere di Siviglia’ (159 mins)
Juan Diego Flores (d’Almaviva), Maria Bayo (Rosina), Pietro Spagnoli (Figaro)
Conductor: Gianluigi Gelmetti, Director: Emilio Sagi, Venue: Teatro Real, Madrid (2005)
what do you think?
The Covent Garden Carmen is thrilling, but I hope you don´t have elderly gentlemen with a heart condition because super hot Anna Caterina Antonacci can raise blood preassure to the roof.
The Teatro Real Barbiere di Siviglia only has Juan Diego Florez on the plus side. Maria Bayo used to be a lovely soprano, but by the time of this production the voice was gone. The Teatro Real production is unlovely.
The Zürich Rigoletto is enjoyable though. Soprano Elena Mosuc should be better known.
