The Opera Tattler
Oct 24, 2024 · * Notes * A delightful revival of The Magic Flute (Act II pictured, photograph by David Allen) opened at Opera San José about a week ago, but I attended yesterday's matinée. The production is cute, the singing is great, and the conducting from Maestra Alma Deutscher was strong. The stage within a stage production designed by Ryan McGettigan and directed by Brad Dalton is very charming.
November 2024 - The Opera Tattler
4 days ago · November 14, 2024. * Notes *. A revival of Carmen opened last night at San Francisco Opera with some very fine singing and lively, brisk playing. Francesca Zambello's 2006 production is both pretty and functional, there is never a pause in the music to set up the stage. Conductor Benjamin Manis had the orchestra at a quick pace.
The Opera Tattler: Ars Minerva's La Flora
1 day ago · Ars Minerva gave the modern premiere of Antonio Sartorio and Marc'Antonio Ziani's 1681 La Flora last weekend at ODC Theater in San Francisco. The Sunday matinée was delightful, the music kept moving, the playing bracing but buoyant, and the singing absolutely beautiful. The libretto, written by Novello Bonis, deals with historical figures from ...
The Opera Tattler: Carmen at SF Opera
5 days ago · Carmen at SF Opera. November 14, 2024. * Notes *. A revival of Carmen opened last night at San Francisco Opera with some very fine singing and lively, brisk playing. Francesca Zambello's 2006 production is both pretty and functional, there is never a pause in the music to set up the stage. Conductor Benjamin Manis had the orchestra at a quick pace.
The Handmaid's Tale at SF Opera
Sep 15, 2024 · San Francisco Opera gave the West Coast premiere of Poul Ruders' The Handmaid's Tale last night. The piece is an impressive theater experience, compressing the more than 300 pages of Margaret Atwood's novel into less than 3 hours. The co-production was first shown at The Royal Danish Theatre (Det Kongelige Teater) in 2022.
SF Opera's Partenope - The Opera Tattler
Jun 16, 2024 · * Notes * A revival of Händel's Partenope returned to San Francisco Opera last night. The sleek staging (Act III pictured, photograph by Cory Weaver) is still very funny and the cast is fantastic. Even though Händel wrote 42 operas, we usually only hear Giulio Cesare and Rodelinda.Partenope (1730) had its first performances in the United States in 1988 and at the War Memorial in 2014, so it ...
The Opera Tattler: The Magic Flute at SF Opera (Again)
Jun 7, 2024 · * Notes * I attended San Francisco Opera's Die Zauberflöte with my family last Sunday, our first with all four of us. It was also my seven-year-old's (pictured left, photograph by author) first time to the War Memorial Opera House.
Innocence - The Opera Tattler
Jun 8, 2024 · * Notes * Hearing Saariaho's Innocence a second time at San Francisco Opera is most gratifying. The music is richly layered and the orchestra sounds great, as do the singers. The whole production is at a very high level, it was even more obvious from the orchestra level how perfectly coordinated the staging was, and how quietly everything was …
The Opera Tattler: Opera Parallèle's Fellow Travelers
Jun 23, 2024 · * Notes * Opera Parallèle is presenting the West Coast premiere of Fellow Travelers (Scene 6 pictured, photograph by Stefan Cohen) this weekend in San Francisco at the Presidio Theatre. The opera, a love story set in McCarthy era Washington DC, features a wordy libretto by Greg Spears and lyrical music from Gregory Spears.. Directed by Artistic Director Brian Staufenbiel, this chamber opera ...
SF Opera's Omar - The Opera Tattler
Nov 5, 2023 · * Notes * Omar, an opera about a West African Islamic scholar sold into slavery, opened at San Francisco Opera this afternoon. The opera by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels is an artful combination of rhythms, syncopation, textures, and lyricism. The main character of the opera, Omar ibn Said, is based on a real person who was born in Futa Toro (present day Senegal) and spent more than ...