Hello once again, fellow opera fans!
It is 7:00 in the evening, and I have just gotten back from a three-hour performance of The Enchanted Island. It was sold out in the theater, and we got last-minute seats, but it was worth it!!!
Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato leads the cast as Sycorax, a sorceress, with baritone Luca Pisaroni playing her son Caliban, who is a monster on the outside but is really a sweet, lovable, touching character. Countertenor David Daniels is the gruff old magician, Prospero, who wishes only to create peace and harmony but instead wreaks chaos, confusion, and grief on all around him. Lisette Oropesa plays the beautiful, mislead Miranda, daughter of Prospero. Known as the King of Tenors, Placido Domingo shines once more as Neptune, god of the sea. Danielle de Niese steals the show as the mischievous sprite Ariel, bringing life and color to her role.
A small but talented orchestra, led by conductor William Christie, accompanies the singers in their difficult roles. (I must say that the orchestra has as much of a difficult part as the singers!)
The cast was about as incredible as any cast gets, but what really made this production special was the intricate scenery and the many amazing special effects projected onto the background (waves rolling, leaves falling, etc.)
If you get a chance to see this production, whether it's at home on TV, in a movie theater, or even at the Met itself, I highly recommend that you try out this new opera.
If you want to get a taste of The Enchanted Island, check out these videos:
Hi again and happy new year, opera fans!
Since it is the height of opera season, I plan to be busy, busy, busy watching opera and writing about it. Here is a tasty little morsel of opera news: Playing this month is the world premiere of a new opera that has just been written! The Metropolitan Opera is producing The Enchanted Island, a new Baroque opera. What do you mean, 'new Baroque opera'? It's not the Baroque period anymore!!! Well, okay. It's called a Baroque opera because the music is all plucked from compositions by Handel, Vivaldi and some lesser composers to fit the mood. Clever British writer Jeremy Samsput the whole opera together, as well as writing the English libretto. I am looking forward to seeing it Live In HD at the end of this month - and I won't forget to tell you about it!
