James Levine’s Return to The Met

Tuesday September 24th, 2013 – James Levine’s return to the podium of the Metropolitan Opera House was the main reason I attended the season’s prima of Mozart’s COSI FAN TUTTE. The maestro last conducted at The Met on May 14, 2011 (WALKURE) and in months that followed numerous rumors circulated as to his health troubles and his posisble return to conducting. One usually reliable source indicated it was unlikely we’d ever see him in The Met pit again.

But then the the outlook began to brighten: Levine was spotted riding his motorized wheelchair thru Central Park. And then came the best news: on May 19th, 2013, Levine led The Met Orchestra in a concert at Carnegie Hall. Tonight he was back in The House where I first heard him conduct at his debut (and exciting but uneven TOSCA in June 1971) and where I have experienced dozens of his performances over the ensuing decades.

About a week prior to tonight’s performance, I heard that COSI was not selling well at the box office. When I relayed this information to a friend, she said: “Well, COSI is not a popular opera.” But I beg to differ: I think it’s always been well-attended in the past; but the current cast – aside from Matthew Polenzani – is not filled with particularly luminous names. In the past when singers like Steber, Stich-Randall, Leontyne Price, Dame Kiri, Carol Vaness, or Renee Fleming headed the cast, audiences were substantial and enthusiastic.

Although this evening’s performance was a red-letter date in the recent history of The Met (thanks to Levine’s presence), as a performance of COSI FAN TUTTE it was not particularly memorable. In general, the men in the cast tended to outshine the women.

An announcement was made as the houselights dimmed: Matthew Polenzani was suffering from a cold, but would sing anyway and asked our indulgence. There were only passing signs of indisposition in Matthew’s singing, and his technique and artistry carried him thru the great aria “Un’aura amorosa” with success: it was the vocal highlight of the evening. Rodion Pogossov was a characterful Guglielmo and Maurizio Muraro a fine Don Alfonso in the Italian buffo tradition.

Susanna Phillips kicked off her big Met season (she is to be Rosalinda in the new FLEDERMAUS and Musetta in BOHEME in the coming months) singing the notoriously difficult role of Fiordiligi with a warm timbre and an even range, meeting the technical challenges of “Come scoglio” successfully. Without effort, she dominated the duets with her smaller-voiced sister, sung by Isabel Leonard. Danielle de Niese was Despina: her voice does not really fall pleasantly on the ear, but her vocal characterization was flavorful.

The House – full in the upper tier but spottier lower down – gave Levine a big ovation when he materialized in the pit, though as Dmitry pointed out, if he’d been conducting for a ‘Wagner audience’, the reception would have been like a tsunami. Levine’s handling of the score and the playing of his musicians was everything one expected and desired. It’s wonderful to have him back, though curiously the two men next to me – who seemed like seasoned opera-goers – kept referring to him as “James Le-VEEN”.

I would have liked to have heard Phillips and Polenzani in their Act II arias and their big duet, but faced with a Gelb-intermission and the less stimulating singing of the other cast members, we headed out, missing the chance to join in what I am sure was a big celebration for the Maestro at the end.

Conductor: James Levine

Fiordiligi: Susanna Phillips

Dorabella: Isabel Leonard

Despina: Danielle de Niese

Ferrando: Matthew Polenzani

Gugliemo: Rodion Pogossov

Don Alfonso: Maurizio Muraro