Reviews, appreciation and analysis of all things opera
Note from William: This post continues my series of observances of historic performances that I attended at San Francisco Opera during the general directorship of Kurt Herbert Adler. This is the fourth of ten such observances of performances from the company’s 1963 Fall season. I was in my first term as a junior in college. … Read more
There were winners all around at Los Angeles Opera, when Placido Domingo conducted a stellar performance of Puccini’s “Tosca”. The winners included the opera’s leading men – tenor Marco Berti as Cavaradossi and Lado Ataneli as Baron Scarpia. “Tosca’s” several important comprimario roles were well-cast also. The winners included the brilliant stage direction and production design … Read more
Grand Opera, whose most popular works offer poignant drama, theatrical situations and spectacle, is a favorite of the modern stage directors and production designers. Classic operas from the core repertory are rethought, often shifted in time and place, and presented in unfamiliar contexts. Sometimes their adventures in regietheater, as the Germans call it, are absurb (see The … Read more
For Part One of this interview, see: The 30th Anniversary Interview with San Diego Opera’s Ian Campbell – Part 1. [Below: San Diego Opera General Director Ian Campbell; edited image, based on a photograph, courtesy of the San Diego Opera.] Wm: As Europe sorts through their financial problems, do you see their governmental subsidies being in … Read more
Note from William: In observance of the 30th anniversary of Ian Campbell’s appointment as General Director of the San Diego Opera, I scheduled the following conversation with him: Wm: Thirty years ago you took over management of the 18-year old San Diego Opera, known for an ambitious repertory but with obvious financial problems. Over three decades … Read more