Yesterday, Italy lost one of its greatest singers of popular music, Milva, a singer who interpreted Brecht (working with Giorgio Strehler at Milan’s Piccolo Teatro), collaborated many times with Astor … [Read more...] about Italian singer Milva has died at 81 – a career from pop to Berio
Brecht
Zubin Mehta reflects on a life in music on the eve of his 85th birthday
Zubin Mehta was rehearsing Così fan tutte in his beloved Florence, where he has collaborated for almost 60 years. I love this city, I am now part of the furniture. Intendent [Alexander] Pereira … [Read more...] about Zubin Mehta reflects on a life in music on the eve of his 85th birthday
Riccardo Chailly and Irina Brook bring Brecht and Weill back to La Scala
On March 18 at 8 pm CET, Riccardo Chailly conducts Die sieben Tosdsünden ("The Seven Deadly Sins") and Mahagonny Songspiel in a live-streamed performance from La Scala. The Kurt Weill double bill … [Read more...] about Riccardo Chailly and Irina Brook bring Brecht and Weill back to La Scala
Evan McKie answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Q&A When did you start dancing? In the womb. Why did you start dancing? I will probably never know the answer to that. I just know why I keep doing it. Which dancer inspired you most … [Read more...] about Evan McKie answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Igor Yebra answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Q&A When did you start dancing? When I was 13 years old. Why did you start dancing? Because I liked it and in my house it was something normal to see ballet; although first I wanted to be a … [Read more...] about Igor Yebra answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
The Mikhailovsky Theatre opens its new season tonight with Semionova and Gomes in Giselle
Tonight the Mikhailovsky Theatre opens its 2012-2013 season with Polina Semionova dancing the eponymous heroine in Giselle. Semionova left to join the Berlin Staatsoper immediately after graduating … [Read more...] about The Mikhailovsky Theatre opens its new season tonight with Semionova and Gomes in Giselle
So does Ute Lemper approve of Angela Merkel? Nein!
Ute Lemper is touring Europe with her cabaret programme which includes material by that most political of theatre writers, Bertolt Brecht. Lemper herself has always been outspoken about her views, … [Read more...] about So does Ute Lemper approve of Angela Merkel? Nein!
Giuseppe Picone answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Q&A When did you start dancing? I started when I was 10 years old at the Teatro San Carlo ballet school in Naples. Why did you start dancing? My elder brother Raffaele took me to the … [Read more...] about Giuseppe Picone answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Vito Mazzeo answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Q&A When did you start dancing? At 9 years old. Why did you start dancing? I saw Carla Fracci dancing. Which dancer inspired you most as a child? Carla Fracci and Erik Bruhn for their … [Read more...] about Vito Mazzeo answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Paul Chalmer answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Q&A When did you start dancing? Age 6, then National Ballet School, Toronto, age 9. Why did you start dancing? Saw ballet on TV. Which dancer inspired you most as a … [Read more...] about Paul Chalmer answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Ornella Vanoni wows the Milanese audience at the MITO Festival
"Le canzoni della Mala" are songs about the Milanese underworld, most of which originated in the 50s when the great Italian theatre director Giorgio Strehler realised that Milan lacked a tradition of … [Read more...] about Ornella Vanoni wows the Milanese audience at the MITO Festival
Private video surfaces of the anti-Israel protest at the BBC Proms concert
A member of the audience filmed the disturbances at Zubin Mehta's 75th Birthday Prom with the Israel Philharmonic, which led the BBC to take its live radio broadcast off the air. The anti-Israel … [Read more...] about Private video surfaces of the anti-Israel protest at the BBC Proms concert
Russian playwright Yuri Lyubimov quits theatre company after half a century
Russian playwright Yuri Lyubimov has left the theatre company he has led for nearly 50 years. Lyubimov, 93, founded Moscow's Taganka Theatre in 1964 but fell out with its actors over pay during a … [Read more...] about Russian playwright Yuri Lyubimov quits theatre company after half a century
Italian dancer Vito Mazzeo is promoted to principal with the San Francisco Ballet
At the end of his first year with the San Francisco Ballet, Italian ballet dancer Vito Mazzeo has been promoted to the role of principal dancer. Mazzeo is a product of the school of the Teatro alla … [Read more...] about Italian dancer Vito Mazzeo is promoted to principal with the San Francisco Ballet
The most luxurious exercise in Giselle compare and contrast since Natalia Makarova and Gelsey Kirkland danced the role at ABT on consecutive nights in 1977
Alastair Macaulay for the New York Times writes: A double climax occurred on Friday and Saturday evenings at the Metropolitan Opera House when the two most idolized interpreters of the title role … [Read more...] about The most luxurious exercise in Giselle compare and contrast since Natalia Makarova and Gelsey Kirkland danced the role at ABT on consecutive nights in 1977
Musical chairs at the ABT
Changes in casting of male roles at American Ballet Theatre continues. The Royal Ballet's Johan Kobborg will make his first appearance with Ballet Theatre as a guest artist at Saturday’s matinee of … [Read more...] about Musical chairs at the ABT
‘Seven Deadly Sins’ coming back at the New York City Ballet Spring Gala
Balanchine’s ballet “Seven Deadly Sins,” with Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weil’s libretto and score, was premièred by the New York City Ballet in 1958. Balanchine had created a first version of the work … [Read more...] about ‘Seven Deadly Sins’ coming back at the New York City Ballet Spring Gala
After 500 years the Romans finally give Lorenzo Lotto his dues
Living in Covent Garden with London's National Gallery on my doorstep, I often used its galleries as a useful shortcut between Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square. As the gallery has free entrance … [Read more...] about After 500 years the Romans finally give Lorenzo Lotto his dues
The Scuderie del Quirinale in Rome celebrates Lorenzo Lotto
The Italian capital is hosting an exhibition of masterpieces by 16th-century artist Lorenzo Lotto, whose distinctive paintings have enjoyed an upsurge in popularity over recent decades. The … [Read more...] about The Scuderie del Quirinale in Rome celebrates Lorenzo Lotto
Elier Bourzac and four other Cuban ballet dancers remain in Canada after tour
A principal dancer with the Cuban National Ballet, Elier Bourzac, is one of five company members who declined to return home with the troupe after its triumphant first appearance in Montreal last … [Read more...] about Elier Bourzac and four other Cuban ballet dancers remain in Canada after tour
Anna Nicole’s breasts loom largely on the Royal Opera House stage – “I’ll eat my six-gallon hat if it’s not a stonking great hit.”
"The sad but true story of Anna Nicole Smith, a two-bit, surgically enhanced American stripper, nude model and C-list celebrity who married an 89-year-old billionaire and ended up, at the age of 39, … [Read more...] about Anna Nicole’s breasts loom largely on the Royal Opera House stage – “I’ll eat my six-gallon hat if it’s not a stonking great hit.”
Sergei Polunin triumphs in Giselle at the Royal Opera House
Judith Mackrell in The Guardian finds much to praise in 21-year-old Sergei Polunin's Albrecht: Physically, Polunin could not be more ideal for the role. With his wide poet's forehead, slender build … [Read more...] about Sergei Polunin triumphs in Giselle at the Royal Opera House
The Maestro and Madonna – it must be the date from hell
From Norman Lebrecht's excellent blog 'Slipped Disc: I had to read this twice to make sure the hangover hadn't turned into a Bruckner nightmare, but even in the cold light of day it appears that the … [Read more...] about The Maestro and Madonna – it must be the date from hell
