Just in case the opera world didn’t already know that Anna Netrebko is one of the ruling prima donnas of the day, the Metropolitan Opera placed her front and centre last night for its new season-opening production Peter Ilytch Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.
History reminds us of great diva rivalries, and sometimes it’s tempting to imagine Netrebko and usual Met opening-night darling Renée Fleming as bitter adversaries for the top career rung. But they’re not rivals because they are completely different singers. To use an analogy from the visual arts, Fleming paints with light, while Netrebko paints with shadow.
Netrebko, who has opened a deeper well of musicianship in her early 40s, is big, dusky, dramatic as she sings from Macbeth, Giovanna d’Arco, I vespri siciliani, Don Carlo and Il Trovatore. She is also in complete and utter control, blunting the bleeding dramatic edge that makes someone like Sondra Radvanovsky so appealing. But the emotional power is all there, ready to kick you in the gut.
Providing impeccable support is conductor Gianandrea Noseda — a favourite guest of the Toronto Symphony — leading the house orchestra of the Teatro Regio in Turin. Tenor Rolando Villazón steps in to partner in one of the four excerpts from It trovatore. The Turin opera company’s chorus makes two appearances, both of which underline how fine the Canadian Opera Company Chorus really is.
You’ll find all the details here.
This is the official promo video:
John Terauds