Saturday, November 12, 2011

If You're Wondering...

...why I haven't had a lot more to say about the S.F. Opera fall schedule, here's the scorecard:

  • Turandot: attended the dress rehearsal. Though it just fine, with the exceptions of terrible stand-and-deliver direction, blocky chorus movement, and Luisotti's decision to go for huge grandeur at the expense of some momentum. Like Irene Theorin; found Marco Berti about four times better than as Manrico (who knew??); though Leah Crocetto lovely. Still love the opera and the lurid Hockney production.
  • Heart of a Soldier: couldn't stomach the thought.
  • Don Giovanni: Not for a few more years, thanks; the 2007 production was great, don't need to see for a while.
  • Lucrezia Borgia: see previous posting.
  • Xerxes: seeing it this coming week as I woke up the day of the primo with a sore back.
  • Carmen: Only if it's Conchita Supervia back from the grave. Maybe in another five or ten years. 
So, right, I am only seeing two of the fall operas during their run. And I'm only planning to see Attila and Nixon in China in June, unless Magic Flute turns out to be the best thing since sliced bread. Hoping for better luck next season, but I have less and less interesting in spending money to see operas for the third, fourth, fifth time unless they're works I particularly love. The SF Symphony Bluebeard will be my fourth over 19 years and I'm not tired of it yet.

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