Metropolitan Opera Guild news: November 2010

It’s that time of year again: the annual “Diva” issue of Opera News is back! This year’s issue boasts a cover story on superstar soprano Anna Netrebko. Among the half-dozen other divas detailed in the November issue are living legend Licia Albanese and Janácek’s fictional Emilia Marty.

Dubbed “the reigning new diva of the 21^st century” (Associated Press), it is only fitting that Anna Netrebko should top Opera News’s list of the year’s prima donnas. In “Anna’s Voyage,” she discusses with Oussama Zahr her upcoming season, her life as a new mother, and her future plans.

Like Netrebko, Licia Albanese was one of the quintessential Mimìs of her day, although it was as Puccini’s other great heroine, Madama Butterfly’s Cio-Cio San, that she is best remembered. Over four decades, she sang more than 300 performances of the role. Having won the hearts of a generation of Met-goers with the honesty and integrity of her portrayals, the Italian-born soprano was awarded the National Medal of Honor for the Arts in 1995. Met radio broadcast host Ira Siff looks back over her life and career, in “Verità.”

Every diva clings to youth as long as she is able, but Emilia Marty goes one step further. Portrayed by such notable divas as Anja Silja, Elisabeth Söderström, and Jessye Norman, Marty (aka Elina Makropulos et al) is the heroine of Janácek’s Makropulos Case. A famous singer at the Vienna Opera, her clandestine, centuries-long postponement of old age and death has driven her to assume a succession of false identities. In anticipation of Olivier Tambosi’s new production, set to bow at San Francisco Opera on November 10, Russell Platt delves into the endless fascination for Janácek’s almost immortal creation.

Sadly, mezzo Lorraine Hunt Lieberson was only too mortal, succumbing to cancer in 2006. Her genius lay in the unique timbre of her voice, and in her gift for connecting with her audience and letting the composer speak directly through her. In “Pieces of Time,” William R. Braun reminisces about the radiant and greatly-missed singer.

Dramatic soprano Deborah Polaski has dominated the Wagnerian stage for more than two decades, winning fame for her interpretations of the great dramatic roles of Wagner and Strauss. The focal point of her career is the demanding title role in Elektra, which she has performed more than 180 times. Scott Barnes catches up with her, in “Bayreuth Bernhardt.”

Big-voiced Broadway soubrette Susan Johnson seemed the likely inheritor of Ethel Merman’s leading-lady crown. Best known today from the original cast album of The Most Happy Fella, she was nominated for the 1958 Tony Award for Best Supporting Actress. Stardom eluded her, however, and when she died in 2003 it had been four decades since she had last appeared on Broadway, as John J. D. Sheehan reports, in “Last of the Broadway Broads.”

Young coloratura soprano Rachele Gilmore was described in a recent Opera News review as displaying “more talent and charm than any one person should be allowed to possess.” Adam Wasserman profiles the up-and-coming star, who made her Met debut last season, in November’s regular “Sound Bites” column.

As ever, there are special extras exclusively for subscribers and Met patrons at the recently redesigned OperaNews.com, including interviews with Anna Netrebko, who inaugurates Opera News’s new online series “Singers’ Studio,” and Olivier Tambosi, director of a new production of The Makropulos Case.

Meanwhile the Guild offers a wealth of lectures in November to support current Metropolitan Opera presentations. The opening of Nicholas Hytner’s new staging of Don Carlo inspires numerous Verdi-themed events. Sarah Billinghurst chairs a Met Talks panel discussion about the opera on Monday, November 1; Nimet Habachy explores the father-daughter relationships in Verdi’s works in a three-part series starting on Sunday, November 7; Jesse Cohen moderates a three-part investigation into the many poets who inspired Verdi, starting Monday, November 8; and Joseph Colaneri explores Don Carlo’s character-defining melodies, on Tuesday, November 23, in a pre-performance discussion. Details of these and many more upcoming events follow below.

Upcoming lectures and public events from the Metropolitan Opera Guild

Monday, November 1 at 6pm – 7pm
Met Talks: New Productions of the 2010–11 Season
Don Carlo
Presented by Sarah Billinghurst at the Metropolitan Opera House
Nicholas Hytner’s new production of Verdi’s most ambitious opera won remarkable acclaim when it premiered in London. It arrives at the Met this fall conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, with Roberto Alagna in the title role alongside a stellar ensemble of singing actors. Sarah Billinghurst welcomes members of the cast and creative team for this panel discussion.
This production panel is also listed as part of the MetTalk series.
Price: $20; Met subscribers: $15; Guild members: $10
Wednesday, November 3 at 6pm – 7:15pm

THE SINGERS’ STUDIO: CANDID AND CASUAL CONVERSATION
In Studio: Mariusz Kwiecien
Presented by Oussama Zahr
Mariusz Kwiecien’s charismatic performing style and luxuriant baritone have made him a hands-down audience favorite in opera houses throughout the world. He speaks with Managing Editor Oussama Zahr about his plans and upcoming performances, including the return of his Dr. Malatesta in the Met’s Don Pasquale, which will be a Live in HD simulcast this season.
Price: $30; $35 at door
Thursday, November 4 at 2pm – 3:30pm

Masterly Singing
(Opera’s American revolution: Grand Opera Meets the Great White Way)
Guiding Light Opera
Presented by Ron Raines
From Victor Herbert and George Gershwin, to Kurt Weill, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim, these composers have created a distinctly American style of opera and operetta, laying the foundation for the Broadway phenomenon. Join jack-of-all-trades daytime television, Broadway, and operetta star Ron Raines as he guides singers through the finer points of light opera.
Price: $20; $25 at door
Saturday, November 6 at 10am – 11:15pm

Beyond Boot Camp: For the Love of Opera
Unrequited Love
Presented by Dottie Allen
Love is a battlefield: affection is sometimes returned measure for measure, and sometimes scorned. Hopes and heartaches are illustrated through scenes and arias from works such as Turandot, Carmen, La Fille du Régiment, Aida, Madama Butterfly, and La Traviata.
Price: $16.00; $20 at door
Saturday, November 6 at 2pm – 3:15pm

OPERA EXPLORERS
Making Flute Magic
Young children (aged 5-8) discover the operatic arts with their families through these innovative and interactive workshops, tied to the Met’s abridged English-language production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. By combining hands-on experiential learning with physical and vocal activity, workshop participants learn to follow a complex operatic plot, and understand the power of music, acting, and design to tell a story. Workshop registration includes an orchestra seat to a Met performance of The Magic Flute. As this is a family workshop, at least one adult and one child aged 5-8 must be in each party.
Price: $60; $75 at the door
Sunday, November 7 at 4pm – 5:15pm

Family Ties: Verdi’s Fathers and Daughters
Rigoletto: A Father’s Curse Fulfilled
Presented by Nimet Habachy
Fathers want what’s best for their children, and hope to keep their loved ones free from harm. When the courtly jester’s jokes are rewarded with a curse, he scoffs at first – only to have his worst fears realized through Gilda’s child-like crush on the wrong fellow. Nimet Habachy explores this family’s tragic fate.
Price: $16; $20 at door
Monday, November 8 at 6pm – 7pm

Verdi’s Touch of the Poet: Seminal Works Inspired by Byron, Hugo, Schiller, and Shakespeare
Verdi and Hugo
Moderated by Jesse Cohen; presented by Marion Lignana Rosenberg
More than one thousand musical works are inspired by the poetic output of Victor Hugo, including over one hundred operas. Best known of these are Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia, Ponchielli’s La Gioconda, and Verdi’s Ernani and Rigoletto. These different interpretations of the poet’s work shed light on the literary and musical genius of these two artists.
Price: $20.00; $25 at door
Tuesday, November 9 at 6pm – 7:15pm

OPERA OUTLOOKS: PRE-PERFORMANCE LECTURES
Così fan tutte: All Women Are Not Like That
Presented by Desirée Mays
Così fan tutte is a great opera with a prickly premise: the idea that all women are fickle and untrustworthy. Desirée Mays explores the hidden complexities of Mozart’s marvelous women from flirts to independent noblewomen. Mozart’s defense of and insights into the psyche of women may all be discovered in his music.
Price: $16; $20 at door
Wednesday, November 10 at 6pm – 7:15pm

OPERA OUTLOOKS: PRE-PERFORMANCE LECTURES
Gender and the Generation Gap in Don Pasquale
Presented by Desirée Mays
The plot of Donizetti’s comedy Don Pasquale hinges on the generation gap between the beautiful young Norina and the elderly bachelor who seeks her hand in marriage. Desirée Mays takes a look at how composers present the challenges of such relationships: with more than a touch of sympathy for man’s foolish aspirations.
Price: $16; $20 at door
Saturday, November 13 at 10am – 11:15pm

Beyond Boot Camp: For the Love of Opera
Tragic Turns
Presented by Dottie Allen
The bittersweet tragedy of certain operas can illustrate many essential truths of human emotion. These musico-dramatic climaxes, clothed in poignancy or madness, show the darker, complex underpinnings of great works of the lyric stage such as Lucia di Lammermoor, Rigoletto, Madama Butterfly, Eugene Onegin, and others.
Price: $16.00; $20 at door
Saturday, November 13 at 2pm – 3:15pm

Family Ties: Verdi’s Fathers and Daughters
Father Figures in La Traviata and La Forza del Destino
Presented by Jane Marsh
Drawn in to love, lust, or redemption, Violetta and Leonora are propelled forward into harsh futures through their own acts – and the persuasion of a prominent father figure. Verdi composed music that combines tension and tenderness to tease out the emotional intensity and passion of these complex relationships, as examined by Jane Marsh.
Price: $16; $20 at door
Monday, November 15 at 6pm – 7pm

Verdi’s Touch of the Poet: Seminal Works Inspired by Byron, Hugo, Schiller, and Shakespeare
Verdi and Schiller
Moderated by Jesse Cohen; presented by Lucy Arner and David Herskovits
Friedrich Schiller is beloved as one of Germany’s most influential classical playwrights. His innovative use of dramatic structure inspired operatic creations including Verdi’s Giovanna d’Arco, I Masnadieri, Luisa Miller, and Don Carlo. Cross-references of the libretti and original literary sources yield surprising insight into the complicated process of synthesizing music and theater.
Price: $20.00; $25 at door
Thursday, November 18 at 6pm – 7:15pm

THE SINGERS’ STUDIO: CANDID AND CASUAL CONVERSATION
In Studio: Miah Persson, Isabel Leonard, and Danielle de Niese
Presented by Adam Wasserman
Miah Persson, Isabel Leonard, and Danielle de Niese, the three youthful ladies starring in Così fan tutte, come together for a conversation with Opera News Online Editor Adam Wasserman.
Price: $30; $35 at door
Saturday, November 20 at 10am – 11:15pm

Beyond Boot Camp: For the Love of Opera
Happily Ever After
Presented by Laura Day Giarolo
Whether riding off into the sunset together or being saved by a knight in shining armor, happy endings of works like Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Le Nozze di Figaro, Turandot, Die Zauberflöte, and La Fille du Régiment bring joy to opera audiences around the world.
Price: $16.00; $20 at door
Saturday, November 20 at 2pm – 3:15pm

Family Ties: Verdi’s Fathers and Daughters
Fathers, Pharaohs, and Princesses in Aida
Presented by Nimet Habachy
Does the love for a king, slave, warrior, nation, or father win out in the epic story of Aida? Gain new insight into the patriarchal pressures placed upon Aida. Nimet Habachy guides us through this beloved heroine’s tale of love and loss.
Price: $16; $20 at door
Monday, November 22 at 6pm – 7pm

Verdi’s Touch of the Poet: Seminal Works Inspired by Byron, Hugo, Schiller, and Shakespeare
Verdi and Shakespeare
Moderated by Jesse Cohen; presented by Lucy Arner and Dr. Alan Stewart
Verdi’s fascination with Shakespearian drama is well-documented, and can be readily seen and heard through his Macbeth, Otello, and his final masterpiece Falstaff. Shakespeare’s works are also showcased by other operatic composers, as well as in ballet and symphonic renderings. What is it about these great works that still inspires us today?
Price: $20.00; $25 at door
Tuesday, November 23 at 6pm – 7:15pm

OPERA OUTLOOKS: PRE-PERFORMANCE LECTURES
Don Carlo’s Character-Defining Melodies
Presented by Joseph Colaneri
Verdi’s lyrical style is clearly heard through the character-defining melodies of his Don Carlo. These scenes and arias reveal the true nature of Elisabetta, Eboli, Carlo, and Rodrigo, as well as the composer’s unparalleled ability to bring human emotion to life through music. Joseph Colaneri leads a musical inquisition into the melodies of this mature Verdi work.
Price: $16; $20 at door
Weekdays at 3:30pm and most Sundays at 10:30am and 1:30pm

BACKSTAGE TOURS
Go behind the scenes for an exclusive look at what it takes to make onstage magic at the Met!
Tours begin and end in the Met lobby during the Met performance season. Backstage Tours offer a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the Met, and visit the expansive scenic and carpentry shops, where sets are built and painted; the costume, wardrobe, make-up, and wig departments that prep and primp today’s star singers for the stage; rehearsal rooms where productions first take shape; the massive stage complex where the action comes to life; and the crown jewel auditorium.
Price: $16; $20 at door; Guild members: $14; Students: $10

All events will be held in the Metropolitan Opera Guild’s Opera Learning Center on the 6^th floor of the Samuel B. & David Rose building at Lincoln Center, unless otherwise noted.
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Metropolitan Opera Guild news: November 2010