zerbinetta

Ernest Reyer wrote a four-act opera sigurd which included three ballets. It is almost never performed. Opera Manhattan did one act of sigurd in the late 1990s.

Didn't they just celebrate their fiftieth wedding anniversary? A long romance. A lot to be thankful for.

Precisely, Helene. I'm happy for a chance to say farewell to Legris. And the other two are a bonus.

Well Holy Moley, that would be worth the trip. Even in the middle of my Ring week!

Trisha Brown is having a short season at BAM starting April 29. One of the pieces on the program was commissioned by the Paris Opera Ballet and will be danced by three POB dancers. Anyone know who they are?

Did anyone else find Danny Tidwell almost unrecognizable? With the chubby cheeks and the double chin & who knows what hiding under the floaty shirt, he was no longer the beautiful Spectre of three years ago. Sad.

There are so many errors, assumptions and distortions in Lundborg's article, it's difficult to know where to begin. Suffice to say that the opera didn't have to pay off singers' contracts as the singers never got to sign them. The dates were set last August and the contracts were promised but never arrived. The singers were stuck with holes in their schedules for fall 2009 and spring 2010.

Hallelujah! Now for Tess Reichlen across the way.

It was planned to finish in time for the 50th Anniversary of Lincoln Center. I wouldn't hold my breath. There is so much yet to be done. You can still access the Met via the staircase to the west of Fisher Hall & avoid the boarded-up Plaza. Or enter downstairs west of the parking garage on 65 St & avoid all the upstairs mess. But then you encounter the downstairs mess.

Mine arrived Wednesday and Thursday. They always send them at the very last minute and after the box office opens. I have complained year after year to no effect.

This is a lovely tribute, Barbarina. Sad news indeed. Evdokimova's Act II Giselle is one of my favorite ballet memories. With her long neck and sloping shoulders she had the ideal Romantic line, from head to pointe. It would have made a lovely lithograph.

Here's hoping Mr Steel has dealt with unions prior to meeting with the daunting and unbending (and several other words which are not so nice) Local 802.

As opposed to us subscribers who will go see any old cast? This is outrageous!

Carnegie Hall and every theater at Lincoln Center make announcements before the curtain goes up. The Met is particularly strong in enforcing this, with ushers patrolling the aisles after the lights go down.

Perhaps the publishers here thought a dragon tattoo sounded sexier? Have you read the books in English and Swedish? The one I've read so far seemed really well translated, which has to make a huge difference. For instance, I cannot understand the populariy of Henning Mankell but perhaps his books are poorly translated?

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has been published here; the other two are to come. I'm waiting. In the meantime, I have fallen in love with James Church's wonderful Inspector O novels, set in North Korea. You might enjoy these. More poetry than prose. Quite exquisite, polished writing.

Anthony Dowell. Gorgeous in Solor's first exit Bayadere Act II. He seemed to be invisibly pulled offstage upper stage right by Nikiya. A vivid memory of twenty years. Ah, yes, Bart Cook. I hope Robert Fairchild gets to do Melancholic. He may have one of those backs, judging from First Movement Suite Three.

I love it!!! EXTERIOR: I've admired it since it was partially unveiled in December. It has the look of an elegant cruise liner docking at Lincoln Center, giving a nod to New York's maritime beginnings and to the river down the block. The facade is open, airy, accessible and user friendly. Lots of places to sit and a Staircase That Goes Nowhere to hang out. No plantings but those poor old trees didn't thrive there anyway. The box office has its own space and there were three windows open tonight (as opposed to the former two) and no waiting. One can enter the interior from the box office (through the cafe) or via steps from Broadway or 65th Street (there's also a ramp on the 65th Street side). The outer lobby is spacious and the Tully folks are welcoming. INTERIOR: There is a wonderful vastness to the outer lobby space and it segues into the theater lobby proper in a lyric fashion. The cafe has a bar & a good deal of seating, some of it on sofas. On the 65th Street side there are also tables & seating for the BYO crowd. There is now handbag/parcel inspection, at the ticket gates. The Morgan Stanley (inner) Lobby has a much higher ceiling than before, with lovely wood paneling. The doors to the balcony are now on the far right and left of the inner wall. In the middle, where the old balcony entry used to be, is an elevator and stairs down to additional restrooms. The old restrooms are still where they were, as is the coat check. The "boutique" has its own kiosk and there are two small bars. THEATER: Quite gorgeous. The ceiling here has also been raised, by a lot! There appear to be fewer seats across in the orchestra and the Loge is further back, not overhanging the orchestra anymore. The seats are soooo comfortable! Slate grey in color. The walls are warm reddish wood. Quite elegant. Acoustics: I liked the old Tully acoustic for lieder and song recitals and small chamber groups. A bit dry but true. No reverb (except from the occasional subway going by). When it came to larger chamber groups and orchestral programs is where things got dicey. The new acoustic is warmer and livelier. Tonight's performance was orchestral - a new "opera" by Martynov. The strings were almost unbearably sweet, beautiful. The woodwinds and lower brass were friendly, but in declamatory passages the horns and trumpets gave me a feeling of being goosed. Padmore also sang tonight. He's a singer I much admired in his early days with Wm Christie's Les Arts Florrisants. It is not a strictly beautiful voice but he's such an excellent singer and had no problems being heard tonight from where we sat Orchestra left. As for Vita Nuova (based on the Dante), I must admit going in with a chip on my shoulder after reading the composer's quote of the "last great opera" being Wozzeck. Well, so much for R. Strauss, Britten, Adams, Golijov, et al, to say nothing of Turandot. Sung in three sections, in three languages (thank heaven for Tully's excellent titles) and three musical forms, it resembled a casserole made with too many ingredients. Take out the onions and the eggplant and the cardomom and you have a better tasting dish. But where it was beautiful it sounded very beautiful. It will remain to be seen (heard) whether or not the hall's acoustic is as friendly to song & small chamber recitals. And Haydn and Handel brasses. This is the only theater in the complex that truly invites one in. Fisher resembles the New Mexico State Penitentiary; the State/Koch is sterile and the Met, with the exception of the (about to be mortgaged) Chagalls and perhaps the arches, no great beauty. All have entry/outer lobby problems. And box office hassles. And long lines on a busy night. No, it doesn't "match" the rest of the complex. And praise be for that. Hurray for Diller Scofido + Renfro!

MET: Oh great. The only distinguishing feature of the Met facade is going into hock? Maybe they'll have to take them down to evaluate them & maybe they will then hang them correctly. NYS/KT: Well, they're not really Nadelmans but copies of smaller Nadelmans, so maybe not worth too much.

There is also the matter of trust. As late as August, all the singers engaged by Mortier were told the dates were firm and the contracts would soon be in the mail. Some weeks went by but this is not unusual in the business where contracts are concerned. Then they read in the paper that they would not be employed by City Opera for the two periods (Fall 2009 & spring 2010) they'd been saving for over a year. This does not engender faith in the institution.

That's fine as long as we aren't limited to IMG artists & Blier's students.

New Mexico's snow survey program director for the Natural Resources Conservation Service is named Wayne Sleep. I think it may be safe to assume there is more than one Wayne Sleep on the planet.

Cooked tacos are generally served folded twice, in half & then quarters. Like paratha, the Indian bread. Someone else will have to answer your other questions.

The food industry seems to be popular among retired dancers, Jock Soto and Christopher Stowell being examples. Must have something to do with all those years of starvation. And wasn't Rachel Moore, Executive Director of ABT, a former dancer?

If you are referring to Spring 2009 season, abatt, the theater will be undergoing the second stage of renovation, which will include new seat upholstery, I'm told.