Opening night at the Met

[chickenfeet]

Last night was the Opening Night Gala at the Met. It was being broadcast as paty of the "Live in HD" series for the first time, though due to time zone issues, only to the Americas. It was pretty good, if very long (the broadcast started at 6pm and finished at 10.50pm). The format was new. Renee Fleming starred in excerpts from three roles; an act from Traviata, an act from Massenet's Manon and the final scene of Capriccio. The main male roles were sung by Ramon Vargas and Tom Hampson. There were three different conductors.

Renee was in great form and did marvellously well switching character and language with no apparent difficulty. The men were also excellent. I hadn't seen Hampson before and was very impressed. Somebody should write an opera about Dracula. He would be perfect. Vargas was Vargas, perpetual goofy grin and all.

The intervals were filled with backstage and celebrity interviews as well as Debbie Voigt vamping it up with the crowd in Time Square, where the show was being broadcast on giant screens. There was also a feature on the upcoming season. The highlight looks to be Robert LePage's new production of Berlioz' La Damnation de Faust. He is incorporating a lot of the multi-media techniques he developed with Cirque du Soleil and it looks like we are going to see a state of the art integration of multi media and live performance. I'm quite excited about that one.

The technical quality wasn't up to the very high standards of previous shows I've seen. The subtitles failed to appear until well into Traviata and the colour was a bit lifeless. This may have been a local calibration issue. The sound was as good as ever. Our local theatre proved incapable of doing something as simple as dimming the house lights when the performances started and bringing them back up during intermissions. Doh!

All in all, a very good show though I didn't really need a late night given I am flying to Halifax this morning.

Comments

[psychochicken.livejournal.com]

Not sure I understand how this works. So do you see it in a cinema then? And do they normally do a whole performance, or bits like this?

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

It's broadcast live in HD to suitably equipped cinemas. Normally they show the Saturday matinee performance (a timeslot which allows it to be seen in Europe as well as the Americas) which is one whole opera. Last night was different because it was the opening night gala which is a big social event.

It's become very popular. Where we saw it they were using two of their biggest theatres.

[lakme.livejournal.com]

I thought Hampson was getting a little long in the tooth to do this kind of thing, but he did well enough, if a little bellowed. I love Vargas.

The designs were nice by and large, save for that first dress in Traviata she wore looked like someone threw up coloured popcorn.

I read that Gelb doesn't want the opening gala structured around one or two singers anymore, but she was promised this before he came on board, so she got it. It was a little technically glitchy, you are right; I didn't hear the first few minutes of Susan Graham talking either, as well as the subtitles.

(And in Manon they misspelled wounded as wonded in one subtitle. Sheesh).

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

I thought the worst dress was that grey number in Manon. It made her look like an old lady not a young courtesan. Also out of period relative to the other Manon costumes.

[melted-snowball.livejournal.com]

Since you know something about opera, and I know nothing, can you suggest which shows might be worth seeing? It seems sort of a given that I'll try to see the Adams opera, but I don't know which of the others I should.

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

The Berlioz looks worth a look. I think Thais will be good too. Natalie Dessay in Somnambula. To be honest the whole season looks pretty solid.

[glitterboy1.livejournal.com]

That sounds excellent!

I think I've only seen Hampson once, quite a few years ago, but I remember being impressed, too.

Shame about the timing, with today's travelling. I hope it's not been too tiring.

[linzq.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I think Renee was only in great form by the Manon. I thought she was out of sorts for the whole Verdi... but yes, she did a great job considering the variety of roles she had to do.

I however, loved the grey dress - it was perfect for her, but perhaps out of style for the rest of the production.

Funny how everyone who sees it gets different opinions. My mum and Krish thought the Verdi was the best part, and I thought she was lifeless until the Manon.

The Capriccio was one of my favourite opera moments yet, I think. I would love to see the whole thing.

And Hampson as Dracula?!?! PERFECT!!!!!!!!!!!

Do you know for whom Vargas was substituting? They mentioned they got him at the last minute...

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

Do you know for whom Vargas was substituting?

I don't

Where did you see the show?

[linzq.livejournal.com]

at the Yonge/Eglinton Silver City - somehow I ended up 2 rows from the front, which was actually perfect for watching everyone's tongue-/jaw-technique!

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

I've got a bit leery of being too near the front since I got the mother of all migraines after watching the first LOTR film on IMAX. Live performances I want to be as far forward as possible but film I need a bit of distance.