Oberon's Glade

Category: Opera

  • Shanghai Grand Theatre ~ LADY WHITE SNAKE

    White snake

    ~ Author: Oberon

    Saturday July 26th, 2025 – Wei was with me tonight for The Shanghai Grand Theatre’s production of LADY WHITE SNAKE, playing a brief run at Lincoln Center. The program note provides this outline of the story: “The legend of the White Snake is a classic Chinese folk tale about Bai Suzhen, a snake spirit who transforms into a beautiful woman in order to experience life and love as a human. She falls in love with and marries a mortal named Xu Xian, but their relationship is threatened by a Buddhist monk named Fahaj, who recognizes Bai Suzhen’s true identity. The story explores themes of love, sacrifice, and the conflict between the mortal and supernatural worlds.”

    There’s much more to the story than that, but I chose to focus more on the choreography and the music rather than on the narrative. The Shanghai company, under the direction of the marvelous Yuanyuan Tan, a longtime star of San Francisco Ballet who I once had the opportunity to meet, is full of beauteous dancers of both sexes. 

    I guess I was expecting a more mythic approach to the story; much of the time the look and feel were quite contemporary. Most of the visuals were stunning. The musical score, by Xu Zhou, which featured passing nods to Chinese folk music, was – in general – more redolent of Rachmaninoff and Borodin: grand, cinematic, and a bit glossy. The choreography, by Wang Peixian, is mainly rooted in classical ballet, with some acrobatic passages for the men woven in. Sets, lighting, and video designs were all strikingly impressive, especially the presence of an enormous bell hovering over the scene.  

    It’s been a while since I took notes in the House of Balanchine; I’d forgotten that it’s nearly as pitch-black as The Joyce. I soon found that I’d over-written existing comments with newer ones. 

    The storytelling was quite clear in Act I; Act II was less compelling, with some scenes feeling over-extended. The choreography lost some of its potency as the ballet progressed, though the level of dancing never faltered. The principals in the cast danced and acted to perfection: Liu Sirui as the White Snake and Wang Nianci as the Green Snake are beauties: my husband referred to them as sisters. Both women danced and acted with finesse and deep commitment. Sun Jiayong as Xu Xian, husband of the White Snake, was poetic, elegant of movement, and an attentive partner. As the rather sinister Psychologist, Fa Hai, Su Hailu gave a stunning performance, his acrobatic feats dazzling to behold. 

    Though losing some momentum after the interval, the production continued to be visually engrossing. The audience seemed thoroughly tuned in to the story-telling, though I began to think the tale of Lady White Snake might be more persuasively told as an opera rather than a ballet. A bit of research revealed that there is indeed an operatic setting of the story: Madame White Snake, composed by Zhou Long and premiered in Boston in 2010; two friends of mine – Ying Huang and Michael Maniaci – were in the cast. 

    The evening ended with a tumultuous ovation and a set of staged curtain calls that sustained the applause for several minutes. One delightful aspect of the performance for me was running into my long-time fellow NYC Ballet fan, Lynne Goldberg, and two of my beloved Graham divas: Xin Ying and Natasha Diamond-Walker.

    ~ Oberon

  • Vivaldi ~ GLORIA

    Koper

    Above: the Cathedral Church of the Assumption of Mary in Koper, Slovenia

    A performance of the Vivaldi GLORIA with the Camerata Academica Koper Chamber Orchestra and the University of Primorska Acedemic Choir and the Chamber Choir Aegida.

    The soloists are Tatjana Vasle and Neža Vasle, sopranos, and Edita Garčević Koželj and Ana Vidmar, altos. Choral preparation by Ambrož Čopi; the conductor is Slaven Kulenović.

    The performance took place at the Cathedral Church of the Assumption of Mary in Koper, Slovenia, in July of 2020.

    Watch and listen here.

    Koper, Slovenia, can trace its name back to the Roman town of Caprea. In 1278, the town voluntarily joined Venice and was later renamed Capo d’Istria. Once part of the Venetian republic, it was ceded to Austria in 1797 and then to Italy in 1918; the city was later incorporated into Yugoslavia. The Communists built an unattractive sprawl of factories and warehouses to the city’s south, but mercifully left the old town almost entirely untouched; it’s this treasure trove of Italian architecture that draws tourists to Koper in modern times.

  • Anna Tomowa-Sintow ~ La mamma morta

    anna t-s

    The great Bulgarian soprano Anna-Tomowa Sintow sings the aria “La mamma morta” from Giordano’s ANDREA CHENIER. Vladimir Ghiaurov conducts. No information on the date and venue is provided.

    Watch and listen here:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFTfpuqGiro

  • David Rendall Has Passed Away

    Rendall-david don ottavio c

    Above: David Rendall as Don Ottavio in DON GIOVANNI

    It’s sad to learn of the death of British tenor David Rendall, who enjoyed a brilliant international career until an onstage injury forced his premature retirement.

    Read about Mr. Rendall’s rise from his studies at the Royal Academy of Music, London, to his great successes on the world’s foremost opera stages here. He later wrote of his sad demise here. 

    I had the good fortune to see David Rendall onstage at the Metropolitan Opera House where he sang more that 130 performances in NY City and with the Company on tour, beginning with his 1980 debut as Ernesto in DON PASQUALE. My first chance to hear him came when the Met brought their DON GIOVANNI to Boston. I later saw him – an expert Mozartean – in COSI FAN TUTTE and IDOMENEO, as well as Matteo in Strauss’s ARABELLA. His other Met roles included David in MESTERSINGER, Alfredo in LA TRAVIATA, and Tamino in ZAUBERFLOETE.

    In 1983, David participated in the Met’s 100th anniversary gala, joining such luminaries as Edda Moser and Sesto Bruscantini in an ensemble from Rossini’s ITALIANA IN ALGERI, which brought down the House. Watch it here.

    One of my favorite Rendall recordings is of the English-language production of Donizetti’s MARY STUART, which marked Dame Janet Baker’s farewell to the English National Opera; listen to their lovely duet here.

    And here is the tenor’s “Il mio tesoro” from Mozart’s DON GIOVANNI.

    David Rendall was married to the beloved mezzo-soprano Diana Montague; their son, Huw Montague Rendall, upholds the high musical standards set by his parents in his highly successful career in opera and lieder.

  • Jonathan Tetelman ~ Nessun Dorma

    Bringing opera to the people: I saw this tenor in MADAMA BUTTERFLY at The Met and I met him afterwards. Tall, great-looking guy, very cordial. I love this video, especially the two tuba players.

  • Gilda Cruz-Romo

    c-r desdemona

    The wonderful Mexican soprano Gilda Cruz-Romo (above, as Desdemona) has passed away at the age of 85.

    Read a long article about her that I wrote many years ago:

    https://oberonsglade.blog/oberons_grove/2008/07/singers-gilda-cruz-romo.html

    Listen to Gilda and the great Jon Vickers in the OTELLO love duet as performed at Houston in 1979:

  • Alois Mühlbacher ~ Urlicht

    Urlicht

    Counter-tenor Alois Mühlbacher (above) sings Mahler’s Urlicht; the pianist is Franz Farnberger.

    Listen here. 

  • TRISTAN UND ISOLDE: Jones & Kollo

    Scanned Section 31-1

    ~ Author: Oberon

    Recalling the day I spotted this DVD of TRISTAN UND ISOLDE on the shelf at the Library of the Performing Arts. The production is from the Deutsche Oper Berlin, filmed on tour at Tokyo in 1993. It stars Dame Gwyneth Jones and Rene Kollo (photo above), two veteran Wagner specialists who were in their mid-50s at the time. During a few days of break from live opera and symphonic performances, I watched this TRISTAN one act at a time on three successive days of bitter cold weather. Despite flaws, I found it to be a moving experience.

    TRISTAN is an opera that took me a long time to embrace. Following my first live performance of it – the thrilling prima of a new production at The Met in 1973 with Birgit Nilsson and Jess Thomas in the name roles – I still found myself shying away from repeated viewings. It was the Dieter Dorn/Jürgen Rose Met production that finally brought me under the spell of this great opera; unfortunately, that gorgeous setting has since been discarded for a tedious updated production – set on a 20th-century battle cruiser – that makes little dramatic sense. Who knows when I’ll see TRISTAN in the theatre again?

    On the DVD, I found the Deutsche Oper’s simple and spare Götz Friedrich production serviceable – though lacking in poetry – in the first two acts. There’s a lot of standing about, but perhaps that’s the nature of the piece. One exciting moment comes at the close of the Liebesnacht, when the stage is flooded with light at King Marke’s return. And I was deeply moved that it is Kurwenal, not Isolde, who collapses in despair over the mortally wounded Tristan as the curtain falls on Act II.

    In the third act, the production reaches its zenith. On an outcropping of rock at Castle Kareol, bathed in silvery light from a desolate sun, Tristan lies near death. During the long scene between Tristan and his faithful retainer Kurwenal, the relationship between the two men has never seemed so poignant (this is thanks in part to Gerd Feldhoff’s splendid acting as Kurwenal). Isolde arrives, her auburn hair now streaming loose, and seeks to revive her lover. The confusion of the arrival of the second ship is well-handled: Kurwenal slays Melot, but then he too meets his death. King Marke’s lamenting words are unheeded by Isolde, who has left earthly matters behind.

    Maestro Jiří Kout shapes the yearning prelude thoughtfully; his conducting throughout the long opera manages to be both passionate and respectful of the singers. At curtain-rise, Clemens Bieber’s singing of the Sailor’s plaintive song is very effective.      

    Dame Gwyneth Jones, possessor of one of the biggest voices ever unleashed in an opera house, shows off that power to fine effect when she chooses; but much of the music is quietly and expressively sung, displaying the soprano’s incredible control. Her highest notes are steady and strong. Annoyingly and inexplicably, the filming continually shows us Tristan rather than Isolde during her Act I Narrative and Curse. While Dame Gwyneth looks rather mature – the costuming in Acts I and II is a bit dowdy – she is entirely credible. Her Liebestod is not vocally perfect, but it moved me deeply. A year after this performance was filmed, I saw the soprano as Elektra at The Met where her singing had staggering force and brilliance.

    Rene Kollo’s experienced Tristan is cannily sung; his tone can display a steady beat, but he is nonetheless vocally persuasive throughout. His third act is truly impactful; passing moments of vocal strain can be overlooked in view of the power and commitment of Kollo’s singing and acting. 

    Hanna Schwarz, Chereau’s Fricka and a splendid Met Klytemnestra in 1999 and 2002, is a bewitching Brangaene; her voice is lyrical yet well-pointed. Ms. Schwarz, slender and graceful, appears to have materialized from out of the Mists of Avalon. Magnificent singing, awash with heartbreak, sets Robert Lloyd among the finest of King Markes.

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    I’ve seen some mighty impressive Kurwenals in my day, but I think Gerd Feldhoff (above) takes the prize – not only for his the clumsy sincerity of his declarations of love for and loyalty to Tristan, but also for his truly beautiful and moving vocalism. His performance makes the third act unforgettable.

    Maestro Kout gives us an expressive rendering of the “Wesendonck” prelude to Act III. Also making a strong mark in the final act are the superb English horn player, tenor Uwe Peper’s crippled and touchingly voiced Shepherd, and Ivan Sardi’s Steersman.

    Peter Edelmann, whose father Otto was an iconic Baron Ochs, beams with smug self-satisfaction as he betrays Tristan: a small but telling bit of characterization.

    I’ll be returning to this DVD in future, for so many reasons.

    ~ Oberon 

  • PAGLIACCI – Metropolitan Opera Record Club ~ 1958

    guarrera

    Above: Frank Guarrera

    During the pandemic, all sorts of operatic treasures had popped up on YouTube. I think that the collectors who have their own channels are finding time to post more, digging deep into their archives. It’s such a boon for music lovers, who – up til then – had been mostly deprived of live in-venue performances..

    Here we have Leoncavallo’s PAGLIACCI from a recording made in 1958 for the Metropolitan Opera Record Club. All of the singers in the cast were dear to me in my earliest days of opera fandom.

    Listen here.

  • LA GIOCONDA ~ Barcelona 1978

    gulin gioconda

    Above: Ángeles Gulín as Gioconda and Montserrat Aparici as Cieca

    A slam-bang performance of one of my favorite Italian operas, LA GIOCONDA, from the Liceu, Barcelona, in 1978. The singers simply go at it.

    Watch and listen here.

    Gioconda: Ángeles Gulín; Laura: Bruna Baglioni; Cieca: Montserrat Aparici;  Enzo: Nunzio Todesco; Barnaba: Sabin Markov; Alvise: Ivo Vinco.

    I only heard Ángeles Gulín live once: she sang Valentine in HUGUENOTS at Carnegie Hall in 1969; Beverly Sills was Marguerite de Valois and Tony Poncet was Raoul. Ms. Gulín had an enormous voice and she used it unsparingly.

    This GIOCONDA has the right knives-out, heart-on-sleeve passion. It’s that kind of all-or-nothing opera. As Gioconda sings of her love for Enzo in Act I: “My destiny is this: to love him, or to die!”

    ~ Oberon