marker: new project started

Today I'm starting the next phase: watching the unrated titles in my collection, and whatever else I want.

Organized in release date order, but sliced up for variety:
1 silent film per day
then

130 to watch Monday: 1928-32

153 to watch Tuesday: 1933-36

152 to watch Wednesday: 1937-43

145 to watch Thursday: 1944-53

159 to watch Friday: 1954-73

152 to watch Saturday: 1974-95

146 to watch Sunday 1996-19

86 to watch: Silents 1914-30

1037 total without the silents

148 s/b avg per list

but 1933 was just too big to move (42 titles) and I refuse to split a year in case I find other titles to add.

Giordano: Andrea Chénier (1985), 8

1h 56min | Drama, Music | TV Movie
Add a Plot »
Director: Humphrey Burton
Conductor: Julius Rudel
Stars: Plácido Domingo, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Giorgio Zancanaro, Jonathan Summers.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0254090/

Premiere 1896

Time: 1789–94.
Place: In and around Paris.

Speaking revolutionary thoughts can get you killed during the wrong regime.

Staging/sets/costumes/acting/singing all fine. Story I didn't follow too closely; it looked familiar from when I watched a version at Met on Demand ('96 version with Pavarotti, which I called 7.5, and did claim to follow). This one's an 8 with a shrug. It might be better or worse if I paid closer attention.

Rated 7.7 (21)

RoyalOpera, cond. Rudel; 8

Verdi: Rigoletto (2001), 8-

2h 47min | Crime, Drama, Music | TV Movie 26 May 2009
A disfigured court jester named Rigoletto seeks vengeance for his daughter who fell in love with the Duke of Mantua, and for his own humiliation, with tragic results.
Director: Sue Judd
Conductor: Edward Downes
Stars: Paolo Gavanelli, Christine Schäfer, Marcelo Álvarez, Eric Halfvarson, Graciela Araya.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386749/

LittleSongBird gave this a 10, as did the only other reviewer, but the overall rating is much lower. She's a prolific IMDb reviewer, especially of opera, and claims Rigoletto is among her top 5 Verdi operas. I'd agree; my list: Otello, Rigoletto, Aida, Traviata, Ballo (some). She prefers the Ponnelle film with Pavarotti (me too), and some old Tito Gobbi stuff that I'll stay away from.

The production is dark. There's only 1 set, with a corrugated aluminum/steel lean-to and broken chicken-wire fencing. The Duke lives in a glass house, so he sees that stuff. It's a bleak place. I always have trouble imagining the Duke staying at Sparafucile's place, and this one, even more so. No pretty palace, no soothing garden, just tetanus potential everywhere.

Gilda is a boyish stick of a woman, hardly what I'd imagine the Duke mooning over for 3 months of Sundays at church. But then they make Ceprano's wife almost identical (he also raves about her), so they probably thought about it.

This is my 6th Rigoletto to rate, and except for the 7 set in Vegas, they're all 8's. I wonder if I watch the first 2 again, would their ratings go up?

I love the (dark, horrible) story, and the performances are fine. But I'm glad I didn't see this one first.

Rated 7.7 (26)

RoyalOpera, cond. Downes; 8-

Donizetti: Lucrezia Borgia (2013), 8

2h 7min | Music | 25 May 2013
In this melodically rich bel canto masterpiece, a femme fatale renowned for her ruthless pursuit of power reveals poignant vulnerability when she comes face to face with her long-lost son.
Director: Frank Zamacona
Conductor: Riccardo Frizza
Stars: Renée Fleming, Michael Fabiano, Elizabeth DeShong, Vitalij Kowaljow.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2962362/

Premiere: 1833

Time: Early 16th century
Place: Venice and Ferrara

Filmed at SF Opera, Sep/Oct 2011

Bought because of Michael Fabiano, one of contestants featured in The Audition (2008). He's ok here, but the role is not terrific. It's prominent (he really is the 2nd lead), but musically it doesn't play into his strengths as much as Traviata (Met on Demand).

Fleming was labeled as "too nice" for the role by some Amazon reviewer(s). The role is intended to show vulnerability in this supposedly ruthless (serial killer) character. I'll be interested to see how Joan Sutherland played it.

DeShong is familiar from Semiramide (2018). Both are trouser roles. I thought she was very good here too. There was physical affection between her character & Fabiano's that strongly suggested male bonding beyond friendship (wink, wink, nudge, nudge).

I liked Kowaljow a lot. I'm always happy for a good bass, bass/baritone. He has only a few other recordings, including a Wotan (or 2?) in 2010 Die Walküre (or 2?).

I chose the still shot instead of the drab dvd cover to illustrate why I like the sets/costumes.

The story is another long lost parent/child (unknown to each other) reunion, but it's not clear that his loyalty shifts when she tells him; it's right at the end of the opera. It was also not clear to me when she determined the truth, probably their 1st act duet.

Rated 9.0 (7)

SFOpera, cond. Frizza; 8

Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth von Mzensk (1992), 8+

1h 40min | Drama, Music, Musical | 1992
Add a Plot »
Director: Petr Weigl
Conductor: Mstislav Rostropovich
Stars: Markéta Hrubesová, Galina Vishnevskaya, Michal Dlouhý, Nicolai Gedda.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104668/

#90 of the top 1000 operas performed ('09-'18).
This is a German production (the credits are about the only place that shows) by a Czech director using a Russian opera with a London orchestra and chorus.

The Lady Macbeth reference is a loose connection. No one becomes king, but murders are committed, and madness ensues.

Bought this because it was so high on the Performed list, and because an Amazon reviewer mentioned it as a good use of overt sexual scenes in an opera (contrasted with the one they were reviewing). Since this is my first viewing of this opera, I'll never be satisfied with a simple staged production; the sex was an integral part of the story. Without it, are they just mooning at each other? (Hmm, wonder if I have (Image Ent.) a censored version; someone contributed male frontal nudity to IMDb. But I watched it on the small screen, and it was probably fleeting.)

The actors were not opera singers; they lip synced to an extant recording. Every character has 2 credits: actor and voice.

The film is very well done. I'd give it a 9, but I'm not crazy about the music. The story, the settings, the performances were all excellent.

Rating 7.2 (68)

LondonPhil, cond. Rostropovich; 8+

Zandonai: Francesca da Rimini (1984), 8

2h 28min | Music | Episode aired 7 April 1984
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Director: Brian Large
Conductor: James Levine
Stars: Renata Scotto, Plácido Domingo, Cornell MacNeil, William Lewis.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0255176/

Premiered at the Teatro Regio in Turin on 19 February 1914

The story takes place in Italy: Ravenna and Rimini.
Time: early 1300s

Saw this during my Met on Demand run, liked it.
Today I only really perked up at the end, when things got, um, well, final. And during some earlier PD/RS kissing scenes; they played it hot and steamy.

Weirdest part: when PD & RS meet and fall in love instantly, we get a lengthy scene with music and mooning/mugging, but no singing/talking.

Good to have for breadth of composers. The only other entry for Zandonai on the list of top 1000 operas performed ('09-'18 worldwide, per OperaBase) is Giulietta e Romeo at 963; Rimini is 300th.

Rated 8.8 (18)

MetOpera, cond. Levine; 8

Puccini: Tosca (2001), 9

2h 6min | Musical, Drama | 14 November 2001
Benoit Jacquot reinvents the way we view opera in this magnificent production of Puccini's story of Tosca's love for the painter Cavaradossi and the intervention of Scarpia.
Director: Benoît Jacquot
Conductor: Antonio Pappano
Stars: Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, Ruggero Raimondi

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0240122/

First performance at Rome, January 14, 1900

Time: June 1800
Place: Rome

Gimmicky presentation, with b/w studio recording footage cut into the opera, along with location-setting outdoor footage shot with jittery cam and sometimes made very grainy/soft focus. Sometimes singers talk over their own singing. Not sure why the camera circles Scarpia so much during Te deum. I love that we get a reflection of Scarpia singing via his dinner knife, an important object later.

But mostly it's a brightly-lit production with some elaborate sets, some minimal. The look is of a sound stage, confirmed by IMDb location info.

None of the gimmicks bother me, and since this is the 5th production going into my collection, a gimmick or two is welcome.

What makes this REALLY welcome are the vocal performances. The voices were recorded in a studio (Abbey Road), so this is ideal aurally. I never saw a problem with lips out of sync, but maybe those are the moments when we get some extra footage.

Gheorghiu looks and sounds the part; acts well too. Alagna does extremely well with his role, really holding his own in duet with Tosca, and Raimondi as Scarpia is wonderful, of course; IMDb shows 4 recordings of Tosca with him and this is my 2nd.

Very glad to add this to my collection.

Rated 7.4 (364)

RoyalOpera, cond. Pappano; 9

Moody: Agreed (2019), 7-

1h 48min | Music | 12 June 2019
Director Simon Iorio
Conductor/composer: Howard Moody
Cast:
Korimako: Tom Scott-Cowell (countertenor)
Elin: Nazan Fikret (soprano)
Alex: Michael Wallace (baritone)
Kronos: Zara McFarlane (jazz singer)
Maya: Louise Winter (soprano, perhaps mezzo)

(not on IMDb)

https://www.glyndebourne.com/events/watch-agreed-online/
https://youtu.be/nq5mw-axv9Q
https://www.glyndebourne.com/opera-archive/explore-our-operas/explore-agreed/
http://www.glyndebourne.com/opera-archive/explore-our-operas/explore-agreed/agreed-synopsis/

Premiered 2019

Although this was in English, and has subtitles, it was hard to follow. They were trying to be ethereal, both ancient and modern.

Set in a land called Orientis, with a nearby island of Aquila, we get political strife that separates a family. Then love blooms and the politics separate the lovers, causing her death. Some sort of reconciliation appears to happen at the end.

What's not clear to me is why the "leader" of the land banished those born in Aquila back to that island. Was it political or was he just trying to rid himself of his mother? When she returns after 15 years, was that his motivation for making the separation of the land from the island even stronger, losing his daughter in the process? If the synopsis, written by the librettist, explained it, I missed it.

GlyndebourneOpera, cond. Moody; 7-

Verdi: Giovanna d'Arco (1989), 7-

2h 7min | Drama, Music | TV Movie
Add a Plot »
Directors: Keith Cheetham, Werner Herzog
Conductor: Riccardo Chailly
Stars: Renato Bruson, Susan Dunn, Vincenzo La Scola

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0254356/

First performed at Teatro alla Scala in Milan, 1845.

Time: 1429
Place: Domrémy, Reims and near Rouen, France

Filmed at Teatro Comunale de Bologna

Purchased this shortly before finding the Tutto Verdi set.
My notes from that production: Tutto Verdi: Giovanna d'Arco (2008), 8

I played this over and over for perhaps a full day (Fri/Sat), and could not connect to it. I would usually look up at about the same moments, so musically/vocally each principal did some good things. And I even looked for other performances of this tenor.

But the production was not wonderful. Look at the poster: Joan of Arc is the big white-gowned actress in the middle. She never changed into battle gear, she never moved like she could participate on the field. Nor did I notice any action. The 2008 production was much better in that regard, where Joan is at least garbed and fit for war.

Going to file this away for now. Hmm, it's not just me:

Rated 6.2 (53)

(multinational funding, including BBC and something Portuguese), cond. Chailly; 7-

Massenet: Cendrillon, 7+

3hr 2min | Music | 30 June 2019
Conductor: John Wilson
Stage director: Fiona Shaw
Film director: François Roussillon
Cast:
Cendrillon: Danielle de Niese
Fairy Godmother: Nina Minasyan
Prince Charming: Kate Lindsey
Stepmother (Madame de la Haltière): Agnes Zwierko

(not on IMDb)

Even though I signed up for emails from Glyndebourne, it was my calendar tickler from last year that pointed me toward seeing this online:
https://www.glyndebourne.com/events/watch-cinderella/
https://youtu.be/BlkvvBQj1lQ
The video is from yesterday's live broadcast, and includes a 20 min intermission with no content. Next viewing, skip to the end of that using the big countdown clock onscreen. After that countdown is when we get the backstage featurette.

This is the story where the father is still living, and stands by helplessly while Cinderella is treated as a servant. In this production, the house is full of servants, but Cindy gets the plum assignment of scrubbing the floors.

This opera may need another watch. They seem to have played with the story a bit, because I got confused about the sequence of events. After Cinderella dons her ballgown, we see her in her rags again (at the ball?), and she switches back into the gown, still at the palace. The story does include a sequence where her father almost convinces her the whole thing was a dream, so perhaps this team was expanding on that early in the show.

Another thing to watch for in a second viewing: is the prince also a household servant in a dress? S/he is presented that way during the scene where the father tries to enforce the dream concept, AND when shoe fits. Per a backstage discussion, they might have been trying to capitalize on the trouser role to make a same-sex statement. But that character is called the Prince, and the women who come to the ball to court him (and later wanting to try the shoe) are called Princesses.

Nice, but happy to have the Met production, which is brightly lit (not so this production), and doesn't insert any confusing extras that I saw here.

GlyndebourneOpera, cond. Wilson; 7+

Chimes at Midnight (1965), 7

1h 55min | Comedy, Drama, History | 22 December 1965
The career of Shakespeare's Sir John Falstaff as a roistering companion to young Prince Hal, circa 1400 to 1413.
Director: Orson Welles
Stars: Orson Welles, John Gielgud, Margaret Rutherford, Keith Baxter.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059012/
Mine is the Criterion edition.

IMDb: Sir John Falstaff is the hero in this compilation of extracts from Shakespeare's "Henry IV" and other plays, made into a connected story of Falstaff's career as young Prince Hal's drinking companion. The massive Knight roisters with and without the Prince, philosophizes comically, goes to war (in his own fashion), and meets his final disappointment, set in a real-looking late medieval England. Filmed in Spain.

I like OW's voice & acting in general, and this is no exception. The archaic language, not so much.

I don't find the character of Falstaff attractive/interesting in any way (apparently Welles disagreed, perhaps because of his alcoholic father, perhaps because of his own inclinations toward excess), not in Verdi's opera nor here. Now his companions (instead of the women he targeted in the opera) are playing tricks on him, taking advantage of his age/weight/intoxication.

I didn't really follow, early on, that Hal would become king; he just seemed one of the companions. Perhaps next time I'll know better.

As for the much-praised battle scene, I was extremely grateful it was not in color. Blood without color is easier to tolerate. Commentary or featurette pointed out that the brutality was indicative of the end of the chivalric era. I think I saw a moment of deliberate brutality toward a horse; hopefully the blows weren't real.

Did I miss a build-up to the deaths of Henry IV and of Falstaff, or were they as sudden as I found them this viewing? I know my attention faded during the battle, and was not as strong after. When I don't find the story compelling, perhaps I should take a break during olde language productions.

Rated 7.9 (6,837)

indie, dir. Welles; 7