Tag Archives: MetHD

Lucia di Lammermoor – Mary Zimmerman’s Production is Still Tops

Posted on March 27, 2011 by philip

Two years ago I saw the MetHD performance of the Mary Zimmerman production of Lucia di Lammermoor starring Anna Netrebko in the title role. This was before I knew about SPLASH, but I was so impressed that I wrote about the opera afterwards just to express my own reactions. Continue reading »

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Nixon in China – John Adams’ opera is relentless

Posted on February 19, 2011 by philip

You may not necessarily enjoy Nixon in China by John Adams but you may be in danger of being ensnared or seduced by it.
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Girl of the Golden West – Deborah Voigt is pure gold

Posted on January 9, 2011 by philip

In 1907 Giacomo Puccini was in New York for the American Premiere of his latest opera Madama Butterfly.  While there he saw David Belasco’s play, The Girl of the Golden West, and remarked, “That is my next opera.” Continue reading »

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Don Carlo – A Great Production on the Whole

Posted on December 20, 2010 by philip

“The whole is equal to the sum of its parts.”  Obvious, isn’t it?  Ten dimes are worth exactly one dollar.  One quart of milk will precisely fill four 8-ounce glasses.  Four 30-second ads totally use up one 2-minute time out.  But wait.  If you pour one cup of sand and one cup of water into a two cup container, there’d be lots of room left over.  If you have 2 ounces of ice-cream in an 8-ounce glass and suddenly add 6 ounces of root beer, you’ll be mopping up a lot of black cow. Continue reading »

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Don Pasquale – Another MetHD Must See

Posted on November 22, 2010 by philip

Thirty years ago I saw Donizetti’s Don Pasquale for the first time.  I remember only one thing about that performance: I disliked it.  I use the word intentionally.  I didn’t just fail to enjoy it, I actively disliked it. I’ve done a little sleuthing in my own records and on the Met Archives web page and deduced that the performance I saw was a PBS rebroadcast of a Met Live TV broadcast.  In the early 1980’s I sat in front of my small-screen TV set and watched many operas.  I enjoyed almost all of them, despite the fact that they were technically far inferior to today’s HD theater performances.  This was the only one I disliked.  Why? Continue reading »

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Rheingold Review – MetHD

Posted on October 14, 2010 by philip

The count-down begins: 5 minutes . . .  4 . . . 3 . . .  2 . . . 1 . . .  The theater lights dim, the audience becomes quiet.  There is an air of expectancy in the CinArts @ Palo Alto Square Theatre where it is 10 AM Saturday morning, as there is on the giant screen in front of us where it is 1 pm in the Metropolitan Opera House in Lincoln Center New  York City. Continue reading »

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Carmen – Elina Garanča Gives New Meaning to “Sexy”

Posted on August 5, 2010 by philip

In recent years I have seen Carmen performed by West Bay Opera, Pocket Opera, Opera San Jose, and Met HD.  Every production is different, and I’ve liked every one of them. Continue reading »

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Turandot – The Prince of Tartary raises stupidity to a new height – or should I say depth? But Love (and Puccini) conquers all.

Posted on July 26, 2010 by philip

This is the third time in less than a year that I have seen this Zeffirelli production of Turandot on HD, and I want to share with you the change in my reaction to each performance.  Here then, in chronological order, are my reviews written on November 7, November 21, and July 21: Continue reading »

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La Boheme – To Cry or Not to Cry

Posted on July 23, 2010 by philip

La Bohme is one of the most popular operas of all time. Continue reading »

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Eugene Onegin Review – Something is different

Posted on July 10, 2010 by philip

San Francisco Splash operanut (Philip Hodge) questions what makes this Met HD production different – Is it me?  Is it this particular production?  Is it Met HD?  Continue reading »

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