nineveh_uk: Picture of fabric with a peacock feather print. (peacock)
[personal profile] nineveh_uk
I went to the Live from the Met cinema broadcast of The Merry Widow yesterday evening. It was a lot of fun, being the sort of production described as ‘lavishly mounted’ on every front, and having Thomas Allen in it. But the memory that will remain most with me is perhaps not the singing, or dancing, or even the decision to shove an extra aria in the finale pulled from a different Lehar piece (WTF, suddenly she’s singing generic praise of love?), but the introduction and interval interviews presented by Joyce DiDonato, who is an American singer and a woman who never misses the chance to use an adjective.

I take back all that I have ever said about the writing advice not to use adjectives. I have found the scriptwriter who really, really needed to hear it. Every singer was introduced as “the adjective [Renee Fleming]”. In one instance before an interview she used five in a row (by that point it was so bizarrre in effect I was counting). Some of what seemed a bit weird to me was presumably expected US vs. British presentation styles*, but no one needs five adjectives in a row like that! I wonder if the singers compare what they got during subsequent performances, ranking the relative merits of being ‘radiant’ vs. ‘American’?

The Met website has tons of clips of previous broadcasts on it, which I can see is going to keep me happy for some time.

*Speaking of transatlantic style difference, I have never seen so many polo necks on an audience before.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 11:47 am (UTC)
From: [personal profile] caulkhead
Is it wrong that I am now going to search YouTube for clips of the commentary rather than the singing?

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 01:01 pm (UTC)
antisoppist: (Dreadful choir)
From: [personal profile] antisoppist
I reallly enjoyed the bits where they showed the backstage crew building the set, if they have those. Not that the performance itself wasn't good, but cameras backstage were an unexpected bonus.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 01:22 pm (UTC)
antisoppist: (Default)
From: [personal profile] antisoppist
Comment vanished as laptop keyboard was not as fine after me spilling saucepan of water on it as I thought and halfway through decided only to type ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp(must not work in kitchen). Just as well I have ordered a new laptop. Laptop now balanced on top of Rayburn.

Anyway. My main thought about the interval interviews was "these poor people have been doing all that singing and probably just want to get back to their dressing rooms and put their feet up and change into their Pontevedran costumes for Act II and here you are over-enthusiastically interrogating them. Let them go!" I think Finnish has inured me to mass front-loading of adjectives.

I am pleased that I introduced the lady sitting next to me to the thought that someone had had to translate the libretto/subtitles.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 03:01 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] lareinenoire.livejournal.com
If you haven't seen the Met's Lucia di Lammermoor (with either Natalie Dessay or Anna Netrebko--they filmed both versions, though I prefer Dessay overall) direct by Mary Zimmerman several years ago, it is harrowingly beautiful. The Mad Scene alone is worth it.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 03:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nineveh-uk.livejournal.com
Thanks for the tip, I'll look out for that.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 03:41 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] wellinghall.livejournal.com
I believe I have heard the lady on Radio 3 occasionally. I know what you mean about her.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-18 03:52 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nineveh-uk.livejournal.com
She was new to me (I seem to have fallen out of the habit of listening to Live from the Met), but I don't think I'd fail to recognise her in future.

Artistic Impression

Date: 2015-01-18 04:08 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] executrix.livejournal.com
Now I'm imagining the kids in the control room holding up signs, but instead of "5" or "9" they say "enthralling" "compelling" "astonishingly lovely" and she just compiles them on the fly.

RE: Artistic Impression

Date: 2015-01-19 08:11 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nineveh-uk.livejournal.com
It would explain a lot.

(no subject)

Date: 2015-01-19 10:15 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kameintence.livejournal.com
Верно:))


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