P.S.

Loved the idea floated by A. Ross in his Volpe gala piece: that Mr. Gelb should get the controversy flowing stat by staging operas in the wrong sets. My 1st round pick would be a Don Pasquale staged in the current Lohengrin. Trebs has to prove she still has teh cute doing a Wilson dance. Kweesh is game, comme toujours. JDF claims injury.

Alternate pick: Wozzeck performed in the Zefferelli warhorse Traviata sets. The rub would be that the Wozzeck lighting design is turned on the 19th century lavishness, so that, for instance, the just offstage ballroom would fill with a foreboding red glow while Violetta is singing about the annihilation of the world by fire--er, liking to party.

Other thoughts?

Quick, Jesus! Cover Your Ears!

This mp3 of a perfectly respectable little choir singing the Hallelujah chorus deserves your IMMEDIATE attention. Make sure to listen to the whole thing.

Finishing the Bat

A: PS, our defense was really strong today
J: wait what about our defense?
A: in softball
J: oh awesome work
A: however, I got played by the other team
J: how?
A: I was on first base, and the next guy hit a single, and as I was approaching second the other team started yelling "Go to third"
A: I am very suggestible when I am running bases
J: haha!
A: and I tried for third, but the ball got there first
J: could you run back to 2nd?
A: I don't think so
A: maybe
J: the Finishing the Hat is nice
A: good
A: I would like to hear mariah Carey's Finishing the Hat
J: hahah
A: everyone should take a crack at that song
J: who else?
J: Latoya Jackson
A: haha
A: sick
A: Beyonce would probably do a nice job
J: yeah I'd listen to that
A: the guy from Crash Test Dummies
A: hahah
J: Aaron Neville
A: ooh
A: good one
A: dolly parton
J: hahah
A: she's good at everything
J: she would do an awesome Finishing the Hat
A: I think I saw somewhere that there is now a documentary about her recent tour
A: this probably needs to be seen stat
J: oh really?
J: wow
J: Cher
A: hells yeah
A: nuts
A: I really want to hear that now
J: Cher singing finishing the hat? haha
A: maybe I will write a letter to that effect tomorrow
J: I'd like to hear Karita Mattila sing it
J: she would be all emotional
J: and would dress like a man
J: and like roll in paint
J: nude
A: and be hott
A: k
A: bed fo reals

Les Tonies

No, I didn't manage to see anything besides Sweeney this year, and no, this does not preclude me from shooting my mouth off about the other plays involved.

• The Jersey Boys win was nothing short of a travesty. I don't care how fun it is, you can't stage an oldies station and have it compete with people trying to write actual new musicals. They should just have a separate freaking category for these things, call it "Best Regurgitated Musical" or whatever. I would also like someone to explain to me (again) how a piece can lose book and score and still win best new musical.
• The History Boys really sounds like a good show. Must do that one of these days.
• Drowsy Chaperone also looks delightful, and J confirms as much.
• I'm sure L. Chanze deserves her Tony for that other "entertainment" very much, altho I really would have liked to see Ms. Lupone take it home. A titan herself, she took a role essentially set in stone by another titan and made it her own. If we are going to award Broadway people for anything, shouldn't it be this?
• At least Sweeney won two categories it earned in spades: direction and orchestration.
• The number from the Wedding Singer made me want to claw my eyes out. How low has the American musical theatre sunk that it can actually make you pine for the authenticity of the original Adam Sandler movie? So very, very, very sad. May it close tomorrow and may we never speak of it again.
• Even though it is supposed to be ass and everyone is complaining about Alan Cumming being a one trick pony/greaseball, I have to say the Threepenny opera number with him and Cindy Lauper was pretty good.
• Supa-cute acceptance award goes to Cynthia Nixon.
• Julia Roberts, you are a big tool.

C'est tout. See also Maury and our favorite countertenor for more.

Rings and things

I mean, not that I need to inform anyone who's anyone who wiles away their time in the opera-'sphere, but La Cieca is doing the Lord's work with her grand mix n' match Ring podcast this month. You know, if the bounty of the Lord included neat opera downloads alongside the goats and milk and honey and stuff.

Over at his place, Maury is using the occasion to throw down his quick and dirty two cents about recorded Ring preferences. Though my knowledge of Ring Cycles and their discontents is rather more limited than his, I would concur that Solti is the place to start. The sound quality is stupendous, which, despite those who would swear by such and such Walkure recorded through a burlap sack next to a consumptive 200 years ago, is pretty dang important when trying to immerse onself in something of the Ring's musical complexity. And Solti brings a remarkably exciting consistency of vision to the money passages.

That said, I really find Windgassen's Siegfried there a chore. Although I suppose that's some further insight for anyone getting into the Ring. With the freakish exception of Melchior, no one on record really makes it through Siegfried alive, or at least without sounding scared shitless 40 percent of the time. Am I wrong?

'05 - '06 Reviews

• Jenufa (Glimmerglass)
• The Greater Good (Glimmerglass)
• Elektra (Tanglewood)
• Tancredi (Caramoor)
• Puritani (Caramoor)
• Lohengrin 2 (Met)
• Rodelinda A/J (Met)
• Lohengrin (Met)
• Tosca (Met)
• Don Pasquale (Met)
• Fidelio (Met)
• Mazeppa (Met)
• Forza A/J (Met)
• Samson (Met)
• Traviata (Met)
• Cyrano (Met)
• Magic Flute A/J (Met)
• Wozzeck A/J (Met)
• Rigoletto A/J (Met)
• American Tragedy A/J (Met)
• Romeo A/J (Met)
• Figaro (Met)
• Turandot (NYCO)
• Mines of Sulphur (NYCO)
• Cosi Fan Tutte (Met)
• Lucia di Lammermoor (Met)