Met: La Fille du Regiment

[kernelbogey]

The Met’s cinema production of Donizetti’s opera tonight was the best thing I’ve seen for ages. Bonkers, but very funny nevertheless. Pretty Yende was superb as Marie, while the tenor Javier Camarena was pretty good too, as well as some of the other supporting cast. Stephanie Blythe (of whom I had not previously heard) in the role of the “wicked” mother was also superb.]

Many thanks for this notice Dave. I went along to my local cinema for the repeat on Monday and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Knowing South Tyrol (part of Italy) quite well, I was amused by the Met's Costume Designer's idea of what Tyrolese peasants would have worn mid-century - more Tuscan than Tyrolese! - but it didn't really matter. The comedy was great and I thought both the leads were terrific.

[Prommer]

This article would suggest that this is very much a tenor and aria specific thing, even at the Met, and that Flórez started the 'tradition' there, as he had at La Scala. Confirmation also that the ROH was having none of it.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/20...andopera.world

I think Florez did sing an encore at the ROH, on one or two nights, in the first revival of this production. Not, sadly on the night I went!

[bluestateprommer]

I too enjoyed watching the quarantine-provided Met Opera video of the 2nd HD go-around for LfdR, with Pretty Yende in the title role. Drolly amusing to hear her ad-libbing some text in Zulu. Kathleen Turner was campily enjoyable, complete with bad French accent, but I think self-awarily bad French accent, as KT is no fool, per this on-line feature about her Met appearance:

https://www.metopera.org/user-information/nightly-met-opera-streams/articles/thus-spake-kathleen-turner/

BTW, thread merger, anyone? (Or folks can simply move their posts here manually.)