Opera Warhorses

An appreciation and analysis of the ‘Standard Repertory’ of opera

Opera Warhorses - Teatro alla Scala - Milano

Entries from December 2006

Kirov’s “Siegfried” Slays Dragon, Conquers Orange County - October 9, 2006

December 29th, 2006

Wagner thought that if one opera of his four-opera “Ring of the Niebelungs” would be performed separately from the other three in the series, it would be “Siegfried”. He, of course, was wrong about this. “Die Walkuere”, perhaps because of the its popular third act “Ride of the Valkyrs”, and certainly for its lusciously written [...]

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Tags: 2005-2008: William's Reviews

Grading Gockley’s First Year in S. F.

December 20th, 2006

David Gockley assumed the general directorship of the San Francisco Opera in the middle of the 2005-06 season, when three operas were still do be performed in the 2006 “summer season”. This was earlier than originally announced, but his predecessor, the embattled Pamela Rosenberg, announced that she “missed her grandchildren in Germany” and would depart [...]

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Tags: 2005-2008: William's Commentaries

Deconstructing S.F. Opera’s Super-sized “Barber” - November 12, 2006

December 17th, 2006

Previously, this website has suggested that, as the footprints of former San Francisco Opera General Director Pamela Rosenberg are washed away over time, the only souvenir of her controversial stewardship may be the world’s largest production of Rossini’s “Barbiere di Siviglia” ever conceived.  Would that this souvenir never existed, and that some spectacular souvenir productions from the [...]

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Tags: 2005-2008: William's Reviews