Anna Netrebko makes her role debut in and as Anna Bolena at the Vienna State Opera on 2 April. Evelino Pidò conducts and the cast also includes Elina Garanca, Ildebrando d'Arcangelo and Elisabeth Kulman. Eric Génovèse directs, with costumes by Sofas'R'Us.
In Anna-mad Vienna, tickets for the sold-out premiere have apparently been going for 800 euros.
Assuming she survives the ordeal, the 5 April performance will be broadcast live to cinemas around the world, including the Covent Garden Odeon and others in the Odeon chain, and it'll also be shown on ARTE TV.
********** more photos on next page ***********
The costumes are disturbing, but perhaps I need to seem them with some nice end tables and lamps to judge properly.
Posted by: pokeygascon | 31 March 2011 at 02:40 PM
Ildebrando d'Arcangelo has been substituted by Giacomo Priesti for the premiere. He will be singing in the rest of the performances. I have been lucky enough to get a ticket for the premiere (and the last one of the run).
Posted by: Carlos | 31 March 2011 at 05:59 PM
I don't agree with the first comment. AAs far as I see on the pics I believe that this production will be a great one.
Posted by: Carlos | 31 March 2011 at 06:01 PM
Oops! Apparently, D'Arcangelo will sing also in the premiere. Now he's announced in the cast for the premiere on the WSO website, while yesterday he was not.
Posted by: Carlos | 31 March 2011 at 08:44 PM
You can also listen to the premiere live on the internet via ORF Radio at 6pm on Saturday.
http://oe1.orf.at/programm/271092
Posted by: HairmanWNO | 31 March 2011 at 10:52 PM
she looks absolutely fabulous in that first picture! Lovin that hair!! Suits her perfectly...
am really looking forward to hearing her perform this role. I hope she excels.
Elina looks pretty fierce too. The costumes for the men on the other hand don't look all that good to me.
Hairman thank you for the link :)
Posted by: jgdm | 01 April 2011 at 04:59 AM
I'm here in Vienna to see it ( and Rodelinda last night) - I missed out on a ticket so we're queuing to stand. It's going to be shown live on a big screen outside the opera house, but I'd still rather stand inside. We have tickets to see it in Dresden (Gruberova) in June, so the comparison between the two will be fascinating.
Posted by: Sarah R | 01 April 2011 at 10:34 AM
radio direct oe1 at 19h !
Posted by: sylvie | 01 April 2011 at 11:10 AM
A performance will also be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in the "Thursday Opera Matinee" on May 5:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00s3gzw
Posted by: Miriam | 01 April 2011 at 11:53 AM
There was a time, when I liked her appearance, then I liked her tops, no I like her wholly.
Anna, you're amazing!
Posted by: Zurriuss | 01 April 2011 at 06:45 PM
And yet one more time the ROH is sitting and watching the train go by.
When will we see and hear Netrebko and Garança singning Anna Bolena in London? When will we hear Netrebko signing in a new production of Lucia? No the ROH is too busy presenting Cosi and Rigoletto and Traviata for the 150th time....
Posted by: Michael | 02 April 2011 at 01:30 AM
If Anna sounds half as good as she looks, she will have been an inspired choice for this role.
Posted by: Rose-Mary Hyslop | 02 April 2011 at 11:41 AM
I am just back from the performance. it was Fabulous !Anna sounds as good as she looks, and so does Garanca and Kulmann and the rest of the cast. It was really a great evening.
Btw I paid EUR 13 (!!!!) for my ticket (2nd row in a box with restricted view)-but this is just the price for a cinema-ticket.
Good night to everybody from Vienna.
I love this blog !
Posted by: Operafan from Vienna | 02 April 2011 at 10:26 PM
I am just back in the UK after the performance and I agree totally with the Operafan from Vienna. All the main singers excelled in their roles, the orchestra played beautifully, the costumes were gorgeous - traditional, just what was wanted - and I thought the sets and production worked well. An amazing evening!
BTW (@Operafan from Vienna) I queued from 1pm for a standing place and by the time I reached the ticket office the €4 tickets for standing at the back of the stalls were sold out. So, I paid €3 to stand in the Balcony with my own personal surtitles in English and I had a much better view than those sitting immediately in front of me had.
Posted by: Sarah R | 03 April 2011 at 03:05 PM
Heard the webcast from Radio 4 Netherlands this past Saturday. I felt that there were moments where the sheer vocal beauty was undeniable, and in her lyrical forgiveness of Giovanna in the opening scene of Act II, Netrebko really got to me, in the way that her Mimi and her post-Act-1 Violetta do! That "Va infelice" will stay with me for a long time. Very lovely and heartfelt.
I was following with the score (sometimes a bad idea!), and she unfortunately did change the music quite a bit in the Act 1 finale, her first moment of real weakness after roughly an hour of really fine singing. She simply expunged the "little notes" altogether, changing the headlong intricate solo at the end of that scene into a strictly syllabic melody with none of the -- written -- divisions at all and also running out of voice at the bottom of the scale.
Her loveliest moment, outside of her forgiveness solo, was the cavatina of her final scene, which was limpid and affecting, with some clean trills, and trills beautifully integrated into the phrasing. After that, she ran into some real trouble for the arduous finale. The instrument, often lovely at many moments through the afternoon, sounded a bit frayed and off-pitch here, and the plain exhaustion of singing for four solid hours came through unmistakably. However, it's hard for me to think of more than one Bolena of today who doesn't show real fatigue at the end, the one exception being Krasimira Stoyanova (who is now a great favorite of mine).
I still hope to hear Netrebko in more congenial repertoire at this crucial juncture in her career. That said, is it possible her occasional failure to surmount some of Bolena's hurdles accurately and
effectively was a function of this being her first time ever with this role? And could it be that her security with the music may improve from here on out? Or could there really be fundamental aspects to this role that will always pose problems for her? I suppose only time can answer that question. Right now, I give her Bolena an A for effort and a B in its final result. We can only see if that will change in the years ahead.
Geoffrey Riggs
Posted by: Geoffrey Riggs | 06 April 2011 at 05:33 PM
I am glad to hear that Netrebko was great!!! Thanks guys.
I am going to Vienna on 14th to try to get standing room tickets for this performance. Can anybody advise me what time I should start queuing? I know that Sarah R wrote she was queuing from 1 p.m. but that was a premiere, I think...
Posted by: Katerina S | 09 April 2011 at 09:41 AM
The only time I ever queued for a standing place in Vienna I went at about 4pm and was near the front of the line, but that was a fairly routine revival of Tosca, for this you would need to go earlier if you want a good place. But there are 567 standing places so you will probably get something even if you don't go until late afternoon, a friend of mine does it often and usually does not go until about 5pm. BTW if you are new to this don't forget to take a scarf or similar to mark your spot on the railings after you go inside to claim it. The places are not numbered, the first people inside get the best places but the scarves are always respected. There are places at the back of the stalls and also right up the top.
Posted by: Miriam | 09 April 2011 at 04:14 PM
All those who admire Anna Netrebko never saw Joan Sutherland. Anna does not even reach the knees of Joan.
Posted by: Peter Feldman | 24 April 2011 at 05:37 AM