Birdsall

I first really noticed him in a big way when he was in Romeo and Juliet. He was great and since then I feel like anything he does is amazing. As an added plus for me personally he seems to have more flowing, graceful arms than most male dancers. I think that helps to make his whole body and all his movements seem to be more flowing or legato.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cp3i1Izy38k&lc=WE1mp18w2sMoVzoqEJksrO3PNufi8KaUkMpoADaq3hY To me this illustrates two different approaches to Kitri: a traditional Mariinsky (or maybe Kirov) style and the new Mariinsky style..... What do others think?

Your description makes me want to see it again to re-evaluate it. I imagine they will do it again one day.

I agree with that assessment. Overall, I think she is a great voice, but everything is not perfect. Rumor has it she might be singing Norma at Covent Garden in the near future, and that is big news, although I think she'll have trouble with the coloratura passages. Still a big star debuting in Norma is always a huge event! Even if she is not the Norma we've all been waiting for it is still an exciting idea on paper.

The first sentence I quote from you is very correct. Even Netrebko and Borodina (both of whom I love) had slight issues, but they were the best, in my personal opinion. The non-international opera stars were not very impressive. This might be a sign of things to come.....pushing more mediocre opera on everyone and ignoring the ballet. I hope not. It was interesting that the Tsar's Box (or whatever it is called in the new house) was so empty. You would think they could easily fill that! Shouldn't those seats be some of the best in the house? Although I know most people think orchestra seats for ballet are best, but often opera is best at a slight distance to really enjoy the size of various voices.

By the way, is it normal to sing "Happy Birthday" in English in Russia? Was the Jewels excerpt after Domingo's "Winterstürme"? I don't remember seeing anything from Jewels so it must have been between Domingo and Netrebko when the transmission cut off momentarily and I had to restart my computer to get it going again.

I watched the whole thing except the transmission on Arte dropped out after Domingo's "Winterstürme" (which made me so sad.....like a God falling and smashing to the earth), but I restarted my computer and got it going again. I saw on the ending credits that part of Jewels was shown. I assume after Domingo, b/c when I restarted I caught Netrebko in a very exciting Lady Macbeth aria "Nel di della vittoria.....vieni, t'affretta"......her full throttle, exciting sound is wonderful, but she had some problems with the coloratura, but this is a very, very difficult aria. Her steering toward more dramatic roles is quite exciting to me. She has also lost some of the baby weight she gained but still isn't the "opera hottie" she used to be, although still very attractive. Loved Kolegova in Etudes. She is so lovely. Beautiful face and gorgeous dancing. After having seen Kondaurova as Carmen, I find Vishneva's Carmen excerpt here too cutesy. Kondaurova is more of a biyatch and better at this role. I actually found Kondaurova's Dying Swan like a swan that would come back to life and punch out whoever killed her. I don't know why but I find her strong physique, strong face, and strong persona just doesn't work on fragile characters. I like her better as Carmen or as the Street Dancer in DQ. Don't beat up on me!!! I know I am in the minority on this view, but somehow I think she excels at strong women and doesn't do fragile very well, although there was nothing wrong with her Dying Swan, and I would take her over a lot of ballerinas outside of the Mariinsky anyday. Rene Pape, who I have always loved, is beginning to have a very dry sound which makes him sound less powerful than he used to. Olga Borodina is still a goddess. Even taking a breath between"responds" in the phrase "reponds, reponds a ma tendresse" during both verses, I still love her. Her best foot is not the high notes and the final one in "Je t'aime" was not great, but overall her voice, in my opinion, is velvet. As I said above, I found Domingo's "Winterstürme" very sad after having seen him in his prime. It is like watching a God fall and his statue smash to pieces on the earth. It saddens me. He managed nice "Andiam"s later as he conducted Netrebko and the other men (each taking a verse of Don Giovanni's duet with her). Overall, an entertaining show. I wonder why they didn't do it in two parts and give the audience a pee break! I would have died if I had been in the audience!!!! During Wagner operas I can't drink all day before a performance (I suck on candy) or take a few sips of drinks.

Interesting that Gergiev says in this article that he wants to bring Italian opera companies and German opera companies to perform their works. Maybe the Mariinsky II will become more of a performing arts center that has all kinds of programs.

It looks like most of the box seats (for lack of a better term since it looks like there are no actual boxes but side seats in what look like the box areas) are made to face forward toward the stage which I have never seen. I would think that is better since side boxes cause people to turn their seats like that anyway if there is room to avoid twisting your neck. It also looks like the Mariinsky II does not have seats jam packed in the way that many of the boxes in the historic theatre has. But judging from the pic with the two men sitting in the seats, it doesn't look like the seats will be comfortable for men at least. Of course, those two men look a bit burly and have coats on.

In effect, this is what the Paris Opera did, not because the Bastille has better acoustics (they're a disaster!), but probably because of the Bastille's new-fangled technical possibilities. The ballet generally doesn't require a tilt-a-whirl stage. About two-thirds of opera productions are staged at the Bastille, and about two-thirds of ballet performances take place at the Garnier. Operas by Mozart and earlier composers are usually done at the Garnier, I would guess primarily for acoustic considerations. It is sad to find out the Bastille hasn't been able to fix the acoustics after all these years. I know installing certain panels that re-direct sound can be used in some houses, but there is probably only so much you can do once the house is already built. I was actually surprised that they started doing some ballet at the Bastille, because I think the plan was originally to keep the ballet and the baroque operas at Garnier. I suspect this is because they figured less stage machinery is needed for both those areas. I suspect scheduling conflicts have forced them to be more flexible. So far from what I have read it sounds like they are planning to use both Mariinsky houses for both arts, but I wonder if over the long run it might be better to do what you say the Paris Opera has done.......I think the historic Russian opera productions and classic ballets (and maybe Fokine) will always look better in the old house. It is truly breath-taking to see a classic Petipa ballet or Russian opera in that setting. The modern stuff and standard opera works would look fine in the new house. Balanchine would be fine in either place for me.

Buddy, the original design is definitely more avant-garde (at least for a historical city). It reminds me somewhat of a Frank Gehry building. And Gehry's buildings are quickly becoming huge tourist attractions in their own right around the world. So you might be right that this was a missed opportunity (I am assuming you feel that way and could be wrong). The final outcome of the exterior of Mariinsky II has ended up being really ho-hum (doesn't break any architectural boundaries), and as Natalia mentioned, looks sort of like a Costco discount store. I can't imagine people 100 years from now wanting to take pictures outside of that building the way they take pictures outside of the historic Mariinsky. Maybe I am wrong. While probably upsetting a lot of people, the original design might have at least been tourist-worthy (I can actually imagine people snapping pics of themselves in front of the original gold alien egg design and posting on Facebook just as people take pics of the Disney Center in L.A.). So far the photos of the interior do look nice for a new building. I mean, nothing to compare with the historic theatre (where you see TONS of people taking pics all over the place before, during, and after performances), but the important thing will be the acoustics and that the stage enables great artistry to work upon it. So far from word of mouth it sounds like Mariinsky II is more conducive to opera. Personally, I would be in favor of moving all opera into the new theatre and doing just ballet in the old theatre!!! I doubt that will happen. Some of the Russian operas probably look better in the old theatre also.

According to the Mariinsky's website the Mariinsky II Opening Gala will be televised in Russia and available for viewing online.....

The Costco comment made me laugh. By the way, the Mariinsky's website is now saying that the Opening Gala will be televised and also available online.

I think the ballets are starting to take after the operas. When Emerging Pictures first came about I believe the operas were mostly pre-taped showings from the beginning (at least that's what I remember), and that's what I meant. I think they did a few opera live, but most were pre-taped. I read that the Met's Live in HD were doing very well while Emerging Pictures operas were not doing as well b/c they were pre-taped, and they were pre-taped due to the time difference. Most people in the U.S. would be at work when they are transmitted live. So Emerging Pictures has no choice but to pre-tape and show at another time here in the U.S. in order to get more than 2 people to attend. For some reason the ballets were usually live but I guess they are realizing that it is hard to get an audience here for the same reason, so it looks like they are going to pre-tape most ballets now too. I think pre-taped performances are better than nothing, but I do think the excitement of seeing something live as it is actually happening is a big draw for a lot of people, and it is too bad Russia can't just start their ballets at 3am! LOL

With more dancers hired wouldn't the Mariinsky also need to hire more teachers? Or will they just jam the dancers into one room? You would think more classes, etc. would be needed, but I know nothing about this. I just imagine the teachers having more work load unless more were hired. So the expense of this new theatre is not over just because it is paid for and finished. More dancers, more teachers, etc. will be more people on the payroll. Weddings on the roof? Gran Dio!!!! How tacky!!! O mio dolor!!!!

Yes, I am glad I went in March instead of White Nights. I was actually going to go to the White Nights this year but changed my plans to March and so I already knew what was playing. I would be really upset not knowing which dates to put on the visa application now. Early June might have all the good ballets. Or late June or early July.......there is no way of knowing, and I do not like to leave my dog (even if my partner takes care of her) for longer than a week. So I would have absolutely no idea when to fly. Needless to say this makes the visa application process complicated b/c you don't even have a hotel booked. Anyone going this summer will have to do the quickie visa that costs way more to get it processed faster.... White Nights has usually been promoted as an international festival. If it were a festival aimed mainly at locals I could understand the delay (it would be no big deal to find out at the last minute what is playing), but this is just plain ridiculous!

I agree. I think lots of us would be interested in seeing the Mariinsky II gala and see how it looks and sounds during a performance (although a transmission would not really give a real idea of the acoustics)....still I suspect there is a lot of curiosity. So it does seem like a missed opportunity. For some reason Gergiev seems determined to do ballet in 3D instead of live transmissions. I have read articles that said the live transmissions of the Met's operas are a much bigger draw for people than pre-taped European opera performances from Emerging Pictures. People want to see things "live" as they are happening if possible. So it is strange that the Mariinsky does not do live transmissions the way the Bolshoi does. Instead it keeps trying to do 3D which no one really cares about.

Americans are very spoiled in being able to travel to so many countries without a visa. We forget that we require citizens of many of those countries to obtain a visa just to visit the U.S. as a tourist. Currently, the U.S. allows tourists from only 37 countries to enter the U.S. without a visa: http://travel.state....thout_1990.html For all the others (including Russia and most states of the former Soviet Union), the application fee alone is $160, and you have to pay that whether or not it is approved: http://travel.state....types_1263.html Do you know why we require other countries or why some require us to have one? I am just curious. I wonder if there is a valid reason. Maybe safety? What does an actual visa do that a regular passport doesn't do? I suppose the application for a visa is targeted toward the country you are visiting, so I guess the country obtains actual information about what you are going to do and how long you will be there, so it gives them more control. I guess a regular passport doesn't do that. Is there any other reason besides that? It seems like someone up to no good could still be a threat with or without a visa, but what do I know?

Some of you may have heard the Vatican recordings by Alessandro Moreschi (the last castrato). I think someone mentioned him in a post above or in another thread. If you haven't, you might want to. Or maybe not! LOL It is a mixed bag. I bought a cd of all his vatican recordings years ago and could never enjoy it. Not only is the recorded sound bad (due to being such old recordings at the beginning of recorded music, but he is also apparently not one of the best castrati that ever sang. To my ears he must be one of the castrati that was rejected by the opera houses. Still it is worth listening to (you can google him and listen to him on YouTube for a free taste of his voice). To me if his overall sound is anything like the famous castrati that came before him, it does sound like a castrated male does sound like a young boy with more power to his voice (less white tones compared to young boys) and a lower register. So it hints at what the great castrati may have sounded like.....not really like women or counter tenors......almost like an in-between state of the two, in my opinion. It literally sounds like a boy who has developed his voice better than the average boy. But who knows if the great castrati sounded like Moreschi. We will probably never know.

I tend to agree. It is the first country I have visited that required a visa, and the problem is that you can't apply until 45 days before you depart. I feel like it is a racket too, because WHY would someone need a visa? I suspect like you that it is because they make a little more money off each person. To connect with the topic: since the White Nights Festival June/July repetoire has not been announced many people will not go this year. You can't even fill out the application for the visa to say what dates you are planning to visit without knowing what is playing in June or July. I am sure this is being caused by the opening of the Mariinsky II and I am sure they are busier this year than previous because of it, but this is a bad sign. If the Mariinsky II is already causing delays in programming (when it is supposed to make things better) it is a sign of things to come, I suspect. I hope I am wrong.

I find all the studio recordings of Guilio Cesare fascinating. Janet Baker's account is very wonderful. But so is the Rene Jacobs recording with Jennifer Larmore for so many other reasons. Each one is so completely different and a product of its time, and we learn so much about the beautiful score by hearing it in different ways. So I find it hard to pick just one. I also have the Glyndebourne dvd which is entertaining and an updated production that I actually like. Danielle De Niese as Cleopatra is on her best behavior back then. I find her very mannered in Poppea and her solo CD. I wish there were time in life to play these things over and over and still have time to walk the dog, eat, etc. LOL

I actually enjoy the Sills/Treigle recording even though it is cut and if I remember correctly some arias are out of order. I haven't listened to it in a long time, so correct me if I am wrong. But it was back when baroque opera was still not well researched. I think it is the best recording of Sills. She is one singer I don't "get" normally. I don't like the sound of her voice usually and don't think she was vocally or dramatically spectacular judging by her recordings and videos. I guess it is a case where you had to be there. BUT in this Julius Cesar recording I feel she did her best work ever.

Yes, the seat back titles are wonderful, in my opinion. You can choose to use them or not use them. No distraction from other screens (I also don't know how they made it that way.....amazing).... But most houses have the supertitles (a screen for everyone above the stage). It doesn't bother me up there either, but some people don't like it. However, I find it easy to tune things out I don't care about. I have had friends yell at me, "Turn off your windshield wipers! The rain stopped 20 minutes ago!" when they are a passenger in my car. I don't notice it, but it drives others crazy. LOL I guess that is how supertitles are. Just the existence of them annoys some people.

For me mezzos in the male roles have a heftier sound than most counter tenors. As for not "getting" counter tenors, kfw, you are definitely not alone. Many opera lovers can't stand them. I am open to them, but I actually do prefer their roles cast with females. Helene, I assume the Treigle recording is your favorite for Guilio Cesare then!

The Met's seatback titles are my favorite, because you can turn them off and you don't get any glare from others around you even if they are using their titles. Santa Fe Opera had the same system (seat back titles) when I went there. I think those are the only two opera houses in the U.S. that have them like that due to the expense. At least I read that once, and since I read it in Opera News there could be more houses that installed them. No idea. Does anyone know if any of the major houses in Europe have them? I noticed that the Mariinsky provides English supertitles for its Russian operas, but other repertoire (Italian, French, German) get Russian supertitles above the stage. Maybe Mariinsky II will have the seat back titles. Back to topic.....the Mariinsky does seem to be having major issues. Vaganova dancers choosing other companies is going to be a major problem if the trend continues. Beyond that, it is now less than a month away that the White Nights Festival begins, and still no word about June and July repertoire. Foreigners need to get a visa for their visit and so this is really ridiculous.