Opera Review

Last night I watched Don Carlo on t.v.

Some people consider this the greatest opera Verdi ever wrote, and it is one I have seen numerous times with stellar casts.

The role of Princess Eboli is sort of like the Holy Grail for mezzos. Actually as I've gotten older, I can see that it's not as complex or interesting a role as Amneris, for example, but it has two exposed B naturals, which has absolutely put it off the table for this mezzo. I've seen some great Ebolis: not just my current idol Dolora Zajick, but also Tatiana Troyanos and Marilyn Horne.

Last night's Eboli was Anna Smirnova, who, according to this online bio, is not even 30! (And is about 30 pounds heavier than she was in this picture!) I didn't take to her at first, but as she went on, I could hear that she had that light, airy, spin on the top Bs that I would kill for. Not all mezzos have it. The last Eboli I heard was Olga Borodina, who, despite being one of the hottest ladies on the stage (she owns Dalila IMHO), definitely had a hard time with not only the B naturals but also the B flats, most of which were nothing but screams. And despite her excess weight, Smirnova really knew how to move onstage and was a totally believable character.

The romantic leads were, to say the least, disappointing. Marina Poplaskaya was totally miscast as Elisabeth (could anyone hear her in the house? her voice is smaller than many Susannas)and I'm just not a Roberto Alagna fan.

But this is the world I so yearn to be a part of! Not just opera, but this kind of opera. Large, lavish, romantic, heavily costumed.

So now how can I go about incorporating this into my life?

Last night's practice went very well. I've gone back to doing those exercises my teacher gave me a long time ago singing just on the consonant "v". No vowel. What's odd is that this has helped me more than anything, but when I told him that he sort of pooh poohed it and said I shouldn't get too stuck on one thing???

So first this concert, then possibly my "pocket" Verdi Requiem idea (I don't want to say too much about this until I've got a venue), and then my goal is to be able to sing "O Don Fatale" in the original key before my 62nd birthday (I've got 12 months and 2 weeks.)

I met my goal of being able to sing "Condotta" by my 61st birthday, so there's hope.