I've been a Deanna Durbin fan for a long time, after seeing some of her movies on AMC in college, back in the days when they actually played classic movies. She was a child prodigy whose movies basically kept her studio afloat during WWII. I bought the Deanna Durbin "Sweetheart Pack" of DVDs as soon as they were available. But at the time I wasn't ( Read more... )

La Sonnambula yesterday was great. I don't know if it's the best opera of all time, but you can't beat Natalie and Juan Diego. Only one more to go, La Cenerentola. Just watched the 1982 film version with Frederica Von Stade this week, and I'm looking forward to seeing how this production compares.

Next year's lineup looks great too. Heard a piece ( Read more... )

Last night after Watchmen we wanted something light to cleanse the palate, and we're already caught up on our TV melodramas, so I threw in L'Elisir d'Amore. We finished it up today. It's a cute, cute opera, and Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazón are both cuter'n puppies in it. Rolando even gets an encore on "Una furtiva lagrima", the aria you've ( Read more... )

There's finally a good version of Der Freischütz on DVD! With a really kickass Kaspar.

Click to view

Best of all is Gottlob Frick -- the finest German bass of his generation, and arguably of the last century -- with that trademark voice of his, pitch black and sounding as if it's emerged from some primordial ooze. Kaspar, the shady hunter in league with the ( Read more... )

Forgot to check for a while. Some of the Met HD broadcasts are now on DVD. Including Peter Grimes. Also had Amazon send me the Macbeth, and while I was shopping I found a DVD of Rolando Villazon and Anna Netrebko in L'Elisir d'Amore. I've been listening to that pair on CD for the last couple of weeks, and am looking forward to putting them up on ( Read more... )

You know how a good food review can make you hungry? A good opera review can do the same thing. I heard her on NPR promoting this tour not long ago, and now my mouth is watering.

Seriously, folks. After family and friends and red wine, I know of no better antidote to doom and gloom than opera. It doesn't even have to be expensive. An open mind, a ( Read more... )

Man, Sopranos is unfocused. It's rather depressing that such a thematically strong show would fall apart into a series of disconnected episodes and personal vignettes. Especially in the last act, when a little reflection and closure would traditionally be called for.

Other than that it's been the weekend of Australian movies.

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  Proof, indie film with ( Read more... )

Tickets to Turandot.
(Using my Callas-in-anger icon 'cause it's the only opera-related one I have at the moment.)