Feature: OPERA ODYSSEY SEPT. 7, 2021, at Home Computer Screens

We fly to Chicago for our first show since both Los Angeles Opera and San Francisco Opera are working on opening their theaters for the initial live performances since the COVID shut down. Before leaving, however, we call ahead for delivery of Chicago-style deep dish pizzas and chianti wine.

Chianti has been around since the Italian Renaissance and wild variations in quality exist, so the Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico established a new level of top quality in 2014, the Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. This is Chianti's attempt at creating a "cru" wine similar to crus in Burgundy, France.

Manon-la-Chat was terribly depressed over being left out of last week's Virtual Opera Tour. She traveled with us but nothing was written about her. Maybe that was because she behaved herself. This week she has an onboard job entertaining Camille, the cat-friendly Portuguese Water Dog. Camille is an experienced European traveler who can manage Bark, a little Meow, and as much French and German as a dog needs to travel. At the moment, Manon is teaching Camille a ball game.

Lyric Opera of Chicago has recorded Ruggiero Leoncavallo's Pagliacci on film. Last week, the company announced that registration was open for audiences to secure free links to screen the new Pagliacci made at the Lyric Opera House. Audiences can now secure a free, on-demand viewing of this verismo production. More information about the production and reservations are available at lyricopera.org/pagliacci.

Peter McClintock directs, with film direction by Matt Hoffman. Lyric's Music Director Enrique Mazzola conducts tenor Russell Thomas as Canio, soprano Ailyn Pérez as Nedda, baritone Quinn Kelsey as Tonio, baritone Lucas Meachem as Silvio, and tenor Eric Ferring as Beppe. Just as Pagliacci was instrumental in bringing a new realism and emotional depth to opera in 1892, the 2021 film deals with universal and timeless themes of desire, jealousy, and revenge. Canio who heads the company is Nedda's husband. Perhaps she had to marry him a year ago. Now, she prefers the young and good looking Silvio, but is afraid to make the final break.

Back at the Flying Opera Magic Carpet, after Mexican custard and some more vino Italiano, we take off for Spain and all is quiet as many travelers sleep between Chicago and the East Coast. As we voyage over the ocean, the sun appears and guides us to the brightly lit land of the original Conqistadors.

Tapas bars, as well as cafés, and restaurants are a way of life in Madrid. Locals live by the combination of walking, eating, and repeating the process since Madrid tapas come free with drinks at traditional bars. For our pre-theater dinner we eat a paella of chicken, sausage, and shrimp at a restaurant decorated with opera-related antiques.

Tosca is one of this era's most popular operas. With its cinematographic pace, abundant leitmotifs, and massive orchestrations, Puccini transcended Italian melodrama and the verismo genre. Sondra Radvanovsky, Joseph Calleja and Carlos Álvarez lead this operatic thriller that is directed by Paco Azorín. Nicola Luisotti leads the Orquesta Sinfónica of Madrid.

OPERA LINK https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ich562nSvv0

This Tosca is also streamed on OperaVision in 2021 and available from them until March 2022.

STORY LINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tosca

We leave at night for Rimini, in the province of Emilia Romagna, on the East Coast of Italy after nightcaps toasting Tosca with citrus-infused Sangria. We land at a government airports outside the city where the Magic Opera Flying Carpet has a date with maintenance. Tour members and crew will be on two busses for the next two days. We stay at a beachfront hotel on the Adriatic where meals are served out of doors in fair weather and behind glass walls when it rains. The unusual opera that draws us here is Verdi's Aroldo, a revised version of Stiffelio that he premiered in 1857.

We eat pre-theater dinner at a beach-front restaurant where the fish are freshly caught and never frozen. With a light olive oil breadcrumb coating, salt and a pinch of parsley on the Rimini catch-of-the-day, we have a perfect seafood grill, or grigliata. A traditional grigliata has to contain local fresh fish. There should always be a sole, a cod, a monkfish, some mullets flavored with rosemary, and a shrimp skewer showered in extra virgin olive oil.

Streaming from the Teatro Amintore Galli in Rimini, music by Giuseppe Verdi and a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave form Aroldo, a four-act melodrama adapted from Verdi's 1850 work, Stiffelio. The first performance of Aroldo was given in the Teatro Nuovo Comunale in Rimini in August 1857.

Aroldo is Antonio Coriano, Mina is Lidia Fridman. The conductor is Manlio Benzi, and the director is Edoardo Sanchi.

LINK STORY https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aroldo

LINK OPERA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZgYR9enHNc

NOTE: A lecturer speaks for about seven minutes at the beginning of the opera.

We lounge on the beach for an extra day of sunshine as the Magic Opera Flying Carpet gets a tune-up. Early Saturday morning, we fly to the United Kingdom for Francesco Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. To save time before the performance, we offer an onboard selection of hot meat pies with all the fixings.

Adriana Lecouvreur unites a stellar cast under the baton of Mark Elder, in a new production by David McVicar of an opera not seen at the Royal Opera House since 1906. Anyone who loves Puccini will find this opera by Cilea just as rich, melodious, and romantic. Its title role has long been associated with star sopranos, and this production is no exception with with Angela Gheorghiu singing the title role opposite Jonas Kaufmann as Maurizio. The story of jealous rivalry in love is set between the worlds of theatre and the world of aristocracy. This production brings the 18th-century atmosphere to life in rich historical detail.

In this 2011 production, Adriana Lecouvreur is Angela Gheorghiu, Maurizio is Jonas Kaufmann, the Princesse de Bouillon is Olga Borodina, and Michonnet is Alessandro Corbelli. David McVicar is the stage director and Mark Elder conducts the orchestra of the Royal Opera House.

LINK OPERA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eI9aE2oAp9Y

LINK STORY https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ADRIANA_LECOUVREUR

We eat a full English breakfast that includes. orange juice, cereals, and stewed fruits. The heart of the breakfast is bacon, eggs, fried vegetables called bubble and squeak, black and white puddings, and sausages called bangers. This spread is usually accompanied by grilled tomato, mushrooms, fried onions, toast, and marmalade. A cup of tea is a popular and traditional drink with this breakfast, as is coffee.

After breakfast, tour members and crew waddle on to the vehicle for the flight to Milan. Camille needs a walk before we take off. Because there are no trees in the area I chose, Manon strolls on the ground with Camille.

The most important dishes from Milan are ossobuco and saffron-infused rice or risotto alla Milanese. Ossobuco, flavorful veal shank, is often accompanied by the risotto. It is said that an artist, not a chef, once added the saffron to turn his risotto yellow and make it more appealing to his guests. The veal shank is fried in onions and butter, and left to marinate for hours in a simmering tomato broth with vegetables and white wine before being served with the risotto. Our group dines on this menu at a restaurant near La Scala. Camille eats Cuisine du Chien on the bus and Manon goes directly to the theater for rehearsal. She will eat after the performance.

The cast of Giacomo Puccini's Il Tabarro at the Teatro alla Scala from 1983 includes: Piero Cappuccilli as Michele, Sylvia Sass as Giorgetta, Nicola Martinucci as Luigi, and Eleonora Jankovic as La Frugola. Gianandrea Gavazzeni conducts.

LINK OPERA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MEvB0my8QE

LINK STORY https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Il_tabarro

After a wonderful week in Europe, we return to Los Angeles fat and happy.

Photo of Russell Thomas by Fay Fox.

To post a comment, you must register and login.