Puccini: La Rondine – Met Live in HD (DVD) – Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna
Price: $40.00 / $34.00 Members: $30.60
Item: 5099963161892
Description
Puccini: La Rondine – Met Live in HD (DVD) – Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna
Composer: Giacomo Puccini
Artists: Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, Monica Yunus, Alyson Cambridge, Marius Brenciu, Lisette Oropesa, Elizabeth DeShong, Samuel Ramey, Tony Stevenson, David Won, David Crawford, Marty Singleton, Anne Nonnemacher, Belinda Oswald, Alexandra Newland, Jason Hendrix, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus
Conductor: Marco Armiliato
Director: Nicolas Joël
Format: NTSC
Language: Italian
Subtitles: Italian, English, German, French, Spanish
Number of Discs: 1
Region: All Regions
Studio: Warner Classics
DVD Release Date: October 12, 2010
Run Time: 114 minutes, plus 8 minutes bonus material
Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna star in the 2009 Metropolitan Opera production of Puccini’s La Rondine (The Swallow). This new production, directed by Nicholas Joël, was the company’s first staging of the opera in 70 years.
This elegant romance is the least-known work of the mature Giacomo Puccini. The story concerns a kept woman who defies convention to chase a dream of romantic love with an earnest, if naïve, young man. With dynamic soprano Angela Gheorghiu and French-born tenor Roberto Alagna performing the roles of Magda and Ruggero, this production blooms into its rightful place in the glorious Puccini canon.
History
La Rondine
World premiere: Grand Théâtre, Monte Carlo, 1917
Initially conceived as an operetta before receiving the full operatic treatment, this bittersweet love story is the least-known work of the mature Giacomo Puccini, largely due to the circumstances of its premiere: Italy and Austria became enemies during World War I, precluding a Vienna premiere, and the opera quietly opened in neutral Monte Carlo, never finding a permanent place in the repertoire.
That loss is scandalous, since La Rondine, judged on its own merits rather than compared to other operas with similar themes, is a fascinating work—featuring an abundance of exuberant waltzes, a lightness of tone (particularly in the intoxicating first two acts), and a romantic vision of Paris and the south of France.
Read 1 Review / Write a Review
Beautiful, spectacular (Act 11), singing and staging. But why not 1080 HD? I saw in theatre and bought the DVD as soon as available.
TijeRandy , March 2024