Everyone around here that I was able to talk to who did manage to stay awake to see the Met on Letterman said it was absolutely awful, and that it would convince anyone who hadn’t been to an opera never to give it a go.
What a shame.
And now it’s off to the races with me. Lots of driving to do. Lots of playing, too.
We were talking about it at rehearsal last night, of course. And the general consensus was that they sounded great. Of course, it’s the Met – if they don’t sound great, we’ve got serious problems. Unfortunately (and I have to believe that this was due to the limitations of the stage they were on), they literally stood and sang. No movement at all. So you’ve got singers in full costume delivering this energetic finale while standing still. With microphones in front of them (which I presume were for the broadcast, and not the house, but who knows). Plus, you’ve got some big opera stars, and no solo singing. I think they should’ve done the Act II finale, so that Figaro, Rosina, and Almaviva would’ve gotten some solo work. Plus, the static “staging” wouldn’t have worked against it nearly so much as it did with the Act I finale.
Yep … you are saying close to what I was hearing. Some thought the tempo was crazy wild. The whole “at the mic” thing is just a shame.