for the nightcap...of my
day-night doubleheader, i saw 'otello'
krassimira stoyanova, as desdemona, was great -- powerful voice -- really...exploded,...when she first came out -- opened up
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| stoyanova and jose cura (otello) |
i found
another great scene from verdi -- the man has
some sense for the dramatic
otello has been reduced to a groveling...worm, prostrate on the ground -- outside, the citizens of cyprus are singing the praises of the lion of venice, for his recent victory -- inside, however, iago stands astride...the defeated otello -- the utterly defeated otello -- and iago roars,...'ecco il leoni'
thomas hampson is a great actor, as well as a great singer
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| hampson and cura |
on the subway ride after 'otello,' i was sitting next to a man reading a spanish newspaper -- on the back cover of the paper was a picture of new york mets pitcher johann santana (for weeks, i'd been singing 'meet the mets,' when i hear,...think about...the met) -- i eventually noticed that he had a plastic bag from the met opera shop -- i asked him if he attended the opera -- he said he worked in the shop -- i showed him the tie i wore (since removed...and placed in my met bag), like the ones sold in the shop
his name is ivan, he's from peru, and he was an opera singer -- he said he was there, for juan diego florez's first voice lesson, when florez was 17 and ivan was 21 -- ivan taught archeology in peru, for 12 years, and sumerian/mesopotamian mythology...were his favorite -- he said that all religions and mythologies...hail from it -- i told him about my nephew and
lugalbanda -- i later asked him about santana -- he said he didn't understand baseball -- hadn't learned it
sunday morning, i went back to the met, for their backstage tour -- they're sold out, for the rest of the season, but i thought i'd give it a shot, anyway
i waited and waited,...in front of the met building, but...no tour group
meanwhile, there was a big group, on the other side of the fountain, singing -- in a foreign language
i haven't been able to insert the video of their singing (from my camera) here -- i'll keep trying
in any case, they were, all girls, and they were from the czech border-city
karvina -- they were in new york, for a singing competition -- two days later, in carnegie hall -- and had a concert in st. patrick's church, monday afternoon
i was told, variously, that they sang permonik (which i heard, and recorded), za nasim humenkem and este si zazpivam
then came a group from a high school in salt lake city -- they sang a hymn -- i just looked it up -- it's called 'the saints bound for heaven' -- part of it goes, 'and through all eternity, we'll rejoice, we'll rejoice' -- i gave 'em...an opera 'bravo'
then they sang...what sounded like a polynesian song -- i caught the words...'nimoni noyay' -- that's what it sounded like
well, i then walked around the corner, to the lincoln center's newest building, the david rubenstein atrium -- i found out, there, that there were no backstage tours of the met, that day (neither the morning or the afternoon tour) -- probably because it was easter sunday -- i must check the
metropolitan opera guild web-site, next time -- they're the ones who conduct the tours, and not metropolitan opera
there were, however, tours of the lincoln center complex -- they call it 'campus'
that tour included the met and the koch theater (formerly the state theater -- designed by cleveland-native philip johnson), which, amazingly, was home to new york city opera, from the time it was built, in 1964, until two years ago -- the metropolitan opera house, next door, opened in 1966
what a building boom took place there, in a matter of...four, five years
there was a dispute over the two...colossal sculptures...at the ends of the second-floor lobby -- i think it was between johnson and the director of the new york city opera/ballet, who didn't want them -- well, to resolve the dispute, johnson had the sculptures installed first, then had the building and staircases (behind the sculptures) constructed, through which...the sculptures could not be removed
there's a similar...construction...design...feat...with the met...building
the lower,...elliptical part of the main staircase...is one piece of concrete,...which had to be installed first, and the rest of the building...built around it
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| this must be from friday night -- the upper picture, during traviata's matinee |
inside the met's auditorium, our tour-guide, sarah, talked about the acoustics of the hall, and asked if anyone wanted to sing -- so i sang the first four lines of 'vedrai carino' -- and...got into...the fifth line,...before...i was rudely cut off -- didn't have to practice much, either -- actually, i have -- in hindsight, i think i should've made a run for it,...to the stage
for my next installment -- my next trick -- my last trick -- food...and a building...that may have been designed by an old friend
