McVicar’s take on Cav and Pag at the Met

By Robert Levine, 26 January 2016

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

Reviewed at Lincoln Center: Metropolitan Opera House, New York City on 25 January 2016

Mascagni, Cavalleria rusticana

Leoncavallo, Pagliacci

Metropolitan Opera

Fabio Luisi, Conductor

Sir David McVicar, Director

Rae Smith, Set Designer

Moritz Junge, Costume Designer

Violeta Urmana, Santuzza

Yonghoon Lee, Turiddu

Ambrogio Maestri, Alfio

Barbara Frittoli, Nedda

Roberto Alagna, Canio

Dmitry Lavrov, Silvio

George Gagnidze, Tonio

The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

The Metropolitan Opera Chorus

Innocence: Saariaho’s final opera receives New York premiere

Kurt Gottschalk, 6th April

At the Metropolitan Opera, Innocence proves a gripping and perhaps divisive piece which feels real because it is a reflection of our reality, with no realistic hope of finding peace.

*****

Tristan und Isolde at the Met: staging gets in the way of the music

No’a L. bat Miri, 9th March

Michael Spyres shines in his debut as Tristan alongside powerhouse soprano Lise Davidsen as Isolde in Yuval Sharon's new, beguiling production at the Metropolitan Opera.

***11

Ailyn Pérez is the perfect Butterfly in the Met’s revival

Robert Levine, 13th January

Good Butterflys are not that difficult to come by but great ones are very very rare. Ailyn Pérez fits the bill in this revival of Anthony Minghella’s classic staging.

*****

Vocal thrills in Met’s traditional staging of Bellini’s I puritani

Susan Stempleski, 31st December

Marco Armiliato conducts a finely balanced rendition of Bellini's final masterpiece with a stellar cast headed by Lisette Oropesa and Lawrence Brownlee.

*****

Porgy and Bess returns stronger than ever at the Met

Robert Levine, 7th December

Back to Catfish Row for another revival of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess and James Robinson’s show continue to wow our writer.

*****

Singers bring passion and excitement to Met’s Andrea Chénier revival

Susan Stempleski, 24th November

The Metropolitan Opera kicks off this season’s revival of Umberto Giordano’s tempestuous melodrama with standout performances from a resplendent cast.

****1

More reviews...

Robert Levine

Robert T. Levine is a New York born-and-bred music writer with a particular interest in music for the voice. His work has appeared in many periodicals and newspapers. He is the author of many books, including The Story of the Orchestra, four volumes in the Black Dog & Leventhal Opera Library, and, most recently, Maria Callas: A Musical Biography.

A 50% success rate: McVicar’s take on Cav and Pag at the Met