VIEWPOINTS – Streaming Diary: Dueling FAUST operas, an exceptional TURANDOT, and the end of City Ballet’s Digital Spring Season

And so the quarantining continues, as does my performing arts streaming. Here are my latest thoughts … OPERA Over the past week or so, I streamed three performances of note, … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Streaming Diary: City Ballet unleashes a diverse set, the Met’s 2008 PETER GRIMES stops the heart, and a pair of short plays disarm

And so, Week Nine (!) of lockdown has come and gone in New York. As mentioned before, I’ve largely kept sane thanks to the performing arts content that I’ve been … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Streaming Diary: Exuberant dancing from City Ballet, a set of captivating opera productions, the invaluable “Stars in the House”, and a little-known Andrew Lloyd Webber musical

Eight weeks of quarantine have come and gone, and I think I would have already gone mad had it not been for the performances I’ve been able to stream at … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – The Met and Sondheim, two pillars of the arts, held up amidst the lockdown and celebrated with considerable style

In light of the bleak uncertainty facing the performing arts during the ongoing lockdown, I’ve been inspired by the valiant and nimble efforts of artists (and administrators) to band together and … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Streaming Diary: Richard Strauss’s ELEKTRA, Bryony Lavery’s TREASURE ISLAND, George Balanchine’s ALLEGRO BRILLANTE, and Robert O’Hara’s GATHER

Like many performing arts fans out there, I’ve been steadily streaming content to enjoy in lieu of attending live performances (which, pre-pandemic, I used to do pretty much on a … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In PRIME, Heather Christian’s untethered imagination sets the act of prayer free

Lucky for us in our current fraught times, Playwrights Horizons was ahead of the curve when it started commissioning its audio-only Soundstage series. The aptly named Heather Christian’s Prime: A Practical Breviary – which I … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – DANIIL TRIFONOV dazzles in a masterful all-Bach recital

This week, I had the great privilege of catching Russian pianist Daniil Trifonov perform an all-Bach program at Alice Tully Hall. The sold-out, one-night-only concert (presented in association with the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – For its new productions of Handel’s AGRIPPINA & Wagner’s DER FLIEGENDE HOLLÄNDER, the Met turns to a pair of tried-and-true directors

Over the last few weeks, the Metropolitan Opera unveiled two new productions. I’m happy to report that both are noteworthy and thought-provoking efforts, the result of two brilliant directors tastefully … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Iván Fischer and his BUDAPEST FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA triumph yet again in their exploration of Dvořák and Mahler

This past Sunday and Monday at David Geffen Hall, as part of Lincoln Center’s Great Performers series, I had the great privilege of experiencing the celebrated Budapest Festival Orchestra perform … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Jaap van Zweden leads his NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC in an eclectic, disorienting program featuring Renée Fleming

Last night, I attended a performance by the New York Philharmonic at David Geffen Hall. The concert was conducted by the orchestra’s music director, maestro Jaap van Zweden, who gamely … Continue Reading →