As La Cieca hinted about six months ago, Anna Netrebko's Violetta will hit the Met boards during the 2010-11 season in the Willy Decker production from Salzburg. In the production (also on video from DGG), the miniskirted and hyperactive Netrebko is joined by Rolando Villazon.
16 August 2006
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
"But I'm Flora... why do I have to dress like a guy, too?"
Can a modern-dress Traviata really be convincing, or is the work so mid-19th century Europe that any tampering with it be just a stunt? Even Garbo in Camille has always seemed to me to be just a little too old for the role, to be really convincing.(sorry, Garbo fans)
Oh, a giant clock. It must be symbolic of something. Passing time? The approach of death? The fragility of life? No, can't think of any connection to Traviata - if only the Director had been less subtle I might of got it!
(Actually, I'm being unfair as I enjoyed the clip and would pay to see that production based on those three minutes.)
La Callas once told someone that when she hit sour notes in Traviata it was dramatic license to show that Vi was dying. Does that hold up as an excuse in the 21st century with the divas we have now?
I haven't been able to get on the Netrebko bandwagon. I suppose I haven't heard / seen a huge sampling of her work, and she seems to have a sparkling dramatic presence, but it sounds to me she like she doesn't know what to do with her voice. I think she'd be better in medium lyric soprano rep.--I could do without her "bel canto." And technically, something about the placement sounds wrong, like she's trying to darken everything. I don't care about the smudgy coloratura, as she can easily select repertoire without intense fiorature. So, I think I'd like her better if she redirected her focus rolewise and voicewise, though many seem to be fine with what she's doing now.
I should see the whole production before commenting on the direction - but - I am less inclined to like it based upon this segment.
I think that Netrebko is a good singer but her singing isn't as great as her voice, which is golden. If she worked harder on her technique, she'd be a "golden age" singer. Add her looks and stage presence and she has enough for an impressive career but she's not maximising her potential.
Post a Comment