This version was premiered under Menotti's direction at the Juilliard American Opera Center on February 6, 1975. The radio broadcast of the premiere, rarely heard after the initial broadcast, was released in 2016, upon the 50th anniversary of the premiere.īarber later revised the opera, with text revisions by Gian-Carlo Menotti, Barber's partner and the librettist of his first opera, Vanessa. The opera was dropped from the Met's repertory after the initial eight performances of the production. Barber’s score, as we discovered from subsequent exposure to revised excerpts in concert and on records, was to a great extent an innocent victim of the over-all fiasco". … The night has gone down in the annals of opera as a landmark of vulgarity and staging excess. Less kindly, the 1966 premiere was retrospectively described as "a hair-curlingly awful production. Among the reasons cited for the opera's lack of success were an "inflated production with problematic technical apparatus, gaudy costumes, overcrowded stage forces, and a press overly attentive to the social glitter of the occasion". The opera was poorly received by the press, and not enthusiastically received by the public. A large hydraulic pyramid of steel, brass, and aluminium dominated the stage with fold up sides that famously trapped Price during the dress rehearsal. A technical error during early rehearsals broke the house's new turntable, causing the entire production to be restaged with movable scenery units. Quickly utilizing the limits of the cutting-edge technology of the new opera house, the mammoth production was not without problems. The stage design and costumes were elaborate the cast was enormous including 22 principal singers, a full chorus, dozens of extras and a troupe of ballet dancers-a company of 400 performers on stage. The team included revolutionary choreographer Alvin Ailey, conductor Thomas Schippers, and a top rate cast headed by Leontyne Price as Cleopatra.Ĭondensing Shakespeare's text from five acts in over forty scenes to three acts over three hours, Zeffirelli preserved much of the speaking style of the original tragedy. For the world premiere-also the opening of the new Metropolitan Opera House-no expense was spared, with the creative team including Zeffirelli himself directing and designing the production.
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