Review: No Norina – A “Don Pasquale” Showstopper at Zurich Oper – September 23, 2007

Zurich was warmer than usual for late September when soprano Malin Hartelius set down to eat a mid-day meal with her children. At the Zurich Opera House, veteran conductor Nello Santi, celebrating what would become an unforgettable birthday, raised his baton for the Zurich season’s second performance of Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale”. [Below: Conductor Nello Santi; … Read more

Review: Hayseed Hilarity – The Pelly “L’Elisir” at Opéra National de Paris, September 16, 2007

Paris is the first stop in my 2007-08 pilgrimage “In Quest of Donizetti” that I have planned to honor the 50th anniversary of Leyla Gencer’s first Donizetti role, Lucia di Lammermoor – her role debut taking place at the San Francisco Opera. In Paris, I experienced the first revival of Laurent Pelly’s imaginative staging of … Read more