It's been quite a year for us here at Seattle Opera! We heard operas in German, Italian, and French, and from the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. Now that 2010/2011 is in the books, it's time to poll you, our wonderful audience, on your favorite production of the season.
Are you a Wagner fan who will choose Tristan und Isolde, or did you prefer the elegance of Lucia di Lammermoor? Was it the comedy of The Barber of Seville or the magical world of The Magic Flute that won you over? Or perhaps it was Seattle Opera's first-ever Don Quixote that thrilled you most. Whichever your choice, we want to know--so cast your vote today!
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Anytime Eglise Gutierrez is on the stage,
ReplyDeletewe want to be there!
Tristan was a terrible production. Don Quixote isn't a great opera, but I am very glad you did it.
ReplyDeleteRather pushing it to say there was a 20th Century opera. Where was Wozzeck or Lulu or Lady Macbeth or Katya or anything like that. At least we got one non-standard. Tristan and its clothesline sucked.
ReplyDeleteMagic Flute was mesmerizing,but the creative set for Don Quixote was the winner.
ReplyDeleteLucia di Lammermoor was the first opera I've seen in 15 years. I was dreading the season tickets I purchased as a present to my wife. I found the program to be fantastic and I found myself looking forward to each opera since. I jumped on getting the new seasons tickets as soon as they were available. Great introduction to opera for me.
ReplyDeleteLucia - I saw the silver cast - was beautiful and thrilling in every way. The Magic Flute was great, and I enjoyed Don Quixote and the Barber of Seville also. The music and singing in Tristan and Isolde were great, but to have an opera about sensuous passion staged with the lovers singing to a boulder instead of each other? The "concept" staging had a detrimental effect in that case, in my opinion. But I won't criticize Seattle Opera for trying something different, because I LOVE THIS OPERA COMPANY. THANK YOU for my education in opera and for the terrific work you do.
ReplyDeleteMy vote goes to Lucia -- one of opera's great dysfunctional families. The Magic Flute was also enchanting!
ReplyDeleteOpposite problems with Tristan and with Magic Flute for me. I subscribed to the gold cast this year.
ReplyDeleteThe singers in Tristan Und Isolde were fabulous--gorgeous voices, they could act, and they all had enough movement training that they were lovely to watch, which is unfortunately rare with opera singers. But I was soooo disappointed that the staging completely nullified their movement abilities. I hated the low-budget sets, I detested the "singing to the boulder" and "follow-the-leader" staging and the frustration I felt throughout was the frustration of irritation, not that of passion denied. Plus the non-ending never gave me the release of all that pent-up passion that it should have been leading toward. It felt like one of those horrible 1970's "life is horrible with no sense nor resolution" artsy depressing films.
In the Magic Flute however, the mediocre singing was upstaged by very interesting and dramatic sets. I loved the three servants of the evil queen, great voices, great comedians, good acting, good movement, great costumes. The Queen of the Night herself was very disappointing in both voice and acting, as was her male counterpart, and the priests of the temple were just boring. Papageno was good, but a bit too polished. I didn't get the sense that he was finding anything new in the part, but rather sort of reminding himself of favorite highlights. Tamino's fight with the dragon was great, very comic.
Lucia di Lammermoor was surprisingly delightful for me, since I'm not so fond of either the story or the composer, but the voices were marvelous, the singers were all passionately involved in their personas, and I came away absolutely happy to have experienced it. Barber of Seville was also great, funny, great singers, with great movement ability. The count's voice was a bit overshadowed, so lovely and delicate, by the showy acrobatics of Figaro's--but after all, the opera is named after Figaro.
I chose Don Quixote as my favorite because the casting was so amazing. The opera itself is weak, but the singers were so fresh and so clearly delighted to be performing in work that was newer to them and to the audience. Sancho Panza was amazing and I hope you have him back again. I was truly moved by this opera and so glad to have had the chance to see it. Plus the horse and donkey were super, and both leads were so attentive to them, in character too.
I'm an ardent fan of John Relyea, loved Edwardo Chama,and thought the costumes and set of Don Quixote were terrific, but I have to say that Aleksandra Kurzak totally blew me away as Lucia, so that one gets my vote (costumes and set were great as well). No complaints about Barber or Flute, both excellent productions. I'll add my negative note about Tristan: how can it be that the spellbound lovers never touch, or even appear mildly interested in one another? Didn't work for me.
ReplyDeleteI was very disappointed in Tristan. Magic Flute was excellent and very fun, but my vote has to go to Lucia. Absolutely compelling singing and acting and ultimately heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteAs a Wagner buff, I was so looking forward to "Tristan". I brought a friend to see his first opera and to share in Wagner's beautiful music but the costumes and sets were a monumental disappointment.
ReplyDeleteMy vote, however, goes to "Lucia" and the outstanding performance by Aleksandra Kurzak.
Ditto to all of the above. I am a HUGE Wagner fan, and I must say, I was not only disappointed but also quite irritated at the intellectual interpretation of Tristan.
ReplyDeleteThe Magic Flute was my favorite.
ReplyDeleteWonderful singing, costumes, action. We attended a Silver cast
performance. The "Queen of the Night" was especially memorable.
Loved it! Popagano was so fun.