Month: February 2014

Review: Superbly Cast and Conducted, the Los Angeles Opera’s “Billy Budd” is a Theatrical Triumph – February 22, 2014

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The Los Angeles Opera revived Francesca Zambello’s now classic interpretation of Britten’s grandest operatic work, “Billy Budd”, about the struggles of Good and Evil aboard a British Warship during the Wars of the French Revolution, [Below: Francesca Zambello; edited image, based on a B.  A. Nilsson photograph from www.metroland.net.] Returning to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion … Read more

Review: Giuseppe Filianoti Leads Strong Cast for “The Elixir of Love” – San Diego Opera, February 15, 2014

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Italian tenor Giuseppe Filianoti made a felicitous San Diego Opera debut as Nemorino in Donizetti’s “The Elixir of Love (L’Elisir d’Amore)” during a weekend that began with Saint Valentine’s Day. The performance also was the occasion for the North American debut of Moldovan soprano Tatiana Lisnic as Adina, the home-town girl who makes Nemorino’s heart … Read more

Popular Opera Offerings in Southwestern Vacation Destinations – March-September, 2014

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This feature highlights selected performances of three popular operas and a musical being performed between March and September 2014, each in a popular vacation area of the Southwestern United States. This supplements my other lists of highlighted performances in California during this period: These include performances of Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” in Los Angeles in … Read more

An Interview with Lyric-Leggiero Soprano Jolanda Meneguzzer

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The following interview is with Signora Jolanda Meneguzzer, a lyric-leggiero soprano  from Florence, Italy, whom I saw perform several roles at the San Francisco Opera in the 1962, 1963 and 1965 seasons. Her responses to my questions are shown in Italian, followed by their translation into English.   [Below: Jolanda Meneguzzer; edited image, based on … Read more