Opera Review: A Swig and a Miss

The Metropolitan Opera imbibes L’elisir d’Amore.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Country bumpkin Nemorino (Matthew Polenzani) woos Adina (Pretty Yende) in the Met's revival
of L'Elisir d'Amore. Photo by Karen Almond © 2018 The Metropolitan Opera.

The soprano Pretty Yende is one of the more sensational discoveries at the Metropolitan Opera this decade, wowing audiences with her sweet tone and superlative bel canto technique since making her debut in the company’s January, 2013 revival of Rossini's Le comte Ory. This month, she sings Adina in the revival of Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore, a charming love story that maintains its front rank among the most popular Italian operatic comedies.

Opera Made (very) Easy

The Met's current slate is ideal for the opera novice.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Cio-Cio San (Amanda Echalaz) meets Pinkerton (Bryan Hymel) in Madama Butterfly.
Photo by Ken Howard © 2014 The Metropolitan Opera.

The month of January is the crux of the season at the Metropolitan Opera, when the company experiments with unusual repertory or quietly opens new productions that take familar works and redo them in an experimental manner (last year's Rigoletto).

However, the Met's current slate of productions features four shows, currently running that are great for those coming to the opera for the first time. So if you're a novice looking to experience their first opera, or the veteran who wants to see a classic work for the first time in years, we've got you covered.

Opera Review: Uncorked

A substitute soprano shines in L'Elisir d'Amore.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

A new vintage: Andriana Chuchman as Adina in L'Elisir d'Amore.
Photo by Ken Howard © 2014 The Metropolitan Opera.

The big story in the Metropolitan Opera's current revival of L'Elisir d'Amore is the absence of Anna Netrebko from the first two performances. With the Russian diva out with the flu, it fell to soprano Andriana Chuchman to step up and make an early Met debut. On Monday night, in the second of her two scheduled substitutions, Ms. Chuchman proved herself to be one of the memorable new talents taking the stage this season--and a testament to the Met's ability to have quality backups in place in case a singer becomes unavailable.

Bottle Fatigue

Anna Netrebko to miss first two performances of L'Elisir d'Amore.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Pass the hat: Anna Netrebko is ill. Andriana Chuchman will make an early Met debut as Adina in L'Elisir d'Amore.
Photo by Chia Messina for Opus 3 Artists. Photo alteration by the author.

L'Elisir d'Amore will return tonight at the Metropolitan Opera, but without Anna Netrebko. In a late-breaking story, the Russian soprano has bowed out of the first two performances of the Donizetti opera, citing illness. Tonight marks the first performance of the bel canto comedy this season.

Opera Review: Finding Nemorino

Anna Netrebko returns in L'Elisir d'Amore.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

The guy behind her has a bigger hat: Anna Netrebko as Adina in L'Elisir d'Amore.
Photo by Ken Howard © 2012 The Metropolitan Opera.

The Metropolitan Opera has revived its season-opening production of L'Elisir d'Amore for a few performances, giving more opera-goers a chance to see director Bartlett Sher's take on Donizetti's most famous comedy. (An earlier Superconductor review was of the opening night telecast, seen among the neon and bustle of Times Square.)

For no apparent reason, director Bartlett Sher refashions this opera buffa as a Verdi-esque clash between oppressive soldiers and would-be guerrilla fighters during the Risorgimento. As Dr. Dulcamara (Erwin Schrott) sells his brand of snake oil to the local peasants, his two assistants distribute single-action rifles from the back of his pushcart. The soldiers under Belcore's command are more threatening than usual, underlining the idea of political and personal tensions that will eventually erupt in violent revolution.

This production (seen Wednesday, Feb. 6) continues to revolve around its two leads, the inspired pairing of tenor Matthew Polenzani and star soprano Anna Netrebko. They both seem more comfortable in their roles, with the show-boating and jitters of opening night ditched in favor of a more natural style of comedy. There's a sweetness that wasn't there before in Ms. Netrebko's performance--she seemed more involved in the character even as she tossed off a virtuosic display of bel canto singing. Her tone was firm and assured in the big solo numbers yet rich and melting in her final duet with Nemorino.

Opera Review: The Conservative Ticket

L'Elisir d'Amore opens the Metropolitan Opera's 2012-2013 Season.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Opening night in Times Square. Photo by the author.
Original images by Nick Heavican (top) and Ken Howard (bottom)
© 2012 The Metropolitan Opera.

The Metropolitan Opera opened last night with the company's first performance of a new production of Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore starring Anna Netrebko. Ms. Netrebko was reunited with her tag-team partners from a successful 2010 revival of Don Pasquale, tenor Matthew Polenzani and baritone Mariusz Kwiecień.

It's true that the Met was due for a new Elisir. John Copley's shopworn 1991 production had soured with audiences, despite an energetic run of the opera last spring. The choice also allowed the Met marketing department to keep Ms. Netrebko's flashing, dark eyes at the heart of its city-wide campaign. However, this was an uninspired choice to kick off the season at a time when opera needs to make itself relevant.

Bart Sher's new production is conservative, lacking the distinct directorial mannerisms and surreal humor that prevailed in his three previous outings for the Met. The sets (by Michael Yeargan) are realistic and picturesque. Catherine Zuber provided elaborate costumes and rich fabrics that ground the opera firmly in the reality of the 19th century. The only oddity is a preference for high black hats: indeed everyone except Mr. Polenzani gets to sport one at one time or another.

Opera Review: Days of Wine and Voices

Juan Diego Flórez and Diana Damrau in L'Elisir d'Amore.

by Paul Pelkonen

Back off: she's got an umbrella. Diana Damrau fends off Juan Diego Flórez in L'Elisir d'Amore.
Photo © 2012 The Metropolitan Opera.

During his tenure, Metropolitan Opera general manager Peter Gelb has made it his mission to phase out old productions of standard repertory operas. So Monday night marked the opening of the last run for John Copley's charming 1991 L'Elisir d'Amore. This popular production uses cardboard cutouts, wooden acting surfaces, bright Italian pastels, tri-color flags and a deliberate theatrical artifice to make the giant Met stage ideal for Donizetti's rural comedy.

Metropolitan Opera Preview: L'Elisir d'Amore

Flórez and Damrau get together over a bottle of wine.
by Paul Pelkonen.

Doctor Dulcamara opens for business in L'Elisir d'Amore.
Photo by Marty Sohl © 2009 The Metropolitan Opera.

They've enthralled audiences (and critics) in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, La Fille du régiment and last season's Le comte Ory. Now, Juan Diego Flórez and Diana Damrau face off once more as Nemorino and Adina in Donizetti's warm-hearted comedy. This is the last set of performances for John Copley's charming production, which will be replaced by a Bartlett Sher staging at the start of next season.


Donizetti wrote some wonderful music for this opera, the story of simple schnook who wins the girl of his dreams with help from a quack doctor and a bottle of wine. Elisir features comic arias, country peasant ensembles and a great "patter" role. But everyone knows this opera for the Act II showstopper "Una furtiva lagrima." This is the aria that Caruso and Pavarotti made famous, the one that makes people bellow "Maaaaa-maaaaa" when asked what they know about Italian opera.

This set of performances has a strong cast. Mr. Flórez and Ms. Damrau are joined by bari-hunk Mariusz Kwiecien in the role of Belcore, Nemorino's rifle-toting rival, and Alessandro Corbelli as the quack Doctor Dulcamara, whose cheap vino acts as the ultimate social lubricant.

Recording Recommendations:
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra cond. Vittorio Gui (Glyndebourne, 1962, released 2010)
Nemorino: Luigi Alva
Adina: Mirella Freni
Belcore: Enzo Sordello
Doctor Dulcamara: Sesto Bruscantini
A revalation: this tape sat in the vault for almost half a century before being released in a 2 disc package last year. The young Freni is miraculous here, paired with bel canto specialist Luigi Alva. A thrilling live performance taped in the intimate conflicts of the Glyndebourne Festival.

English Chamber Orchestra cond. Richard Bonynge (Decca, 1972)
Nemorino: Luciano Pavarotti
Adina: Joan Sutherland
Belcore: Dominic Cossa
Doctor Dulcamara: Spiro Malas
This is one of the classic Decca recordings pairing the unbeatable combination of Sutherland and Pavarotti in bel canto repertory. Luciano injects his ineffable charm into the role of the lovestruck Nemorino. Sutherland's cool approach to the music suits the bookish Adina. With her husband conducting, La Stupenda takes a different cabaletta than the norm in Act II, singing one written for the great Maria Malibran.
Return to the Metropolitan Opera Season Preview!

Contact the author: E-mail Superconductor editor Paul Pelkonen.

Opera Review: The Finer Diner

David Lomelí triumphs in L'Elisir at City Opera.

David Lomelí as Nemorino in L'Elisir d'Amore at New York City Opera.
Photo by Carol Rosegg © 2011 New York City Opera.

If you're going to sing Nemorino, you need to be brave. The tenor role in L'Elisir d'Amore is not especially challenging for the voice. But it carries with it a legacy, the weight of association with the singing legacy of Luciano Pavarotti and before him, Enrico Caruso.

On Thursday night, in the New York City Opera's revival of the Donizetti opera, tenor David Lomelí proved himself worthy of that legacy. Mr. Lomelí has a firm, dulcet instrument, capable of adding a little steel beneath the velvet to lend force to his character's wine-fueled outbursts of passion.


He is also is a good comic actor, holding the center of Jonathan Miller's Route 66-inspired production, which transports this country bumpkin to the American Southwest of the 1950s. In this version, the hapless Nemorino is a long-suffering pump boy (with lashings of James Dean) attempting to win the affections of Adina, owner of the diner and its attached gas station.

The City Opera has surrounded the tenor with a fine supporting cast, led by Ukrainian soprano Stefania Dovhan as Adina. She has a soaring bel canto instrument under her movie-star blonde wig. Baritone José Adán Pérez was a bantam-like, cocky Belcore, re-imagined as a U.S. Army sergeant who recruits all of Nemorino's co-workers. Meredith Lustig provided able, sexy support as Giannetta.

Next to the leads, Elisir rises or falls on Dr. Dulcamara, the quack doctor who markets cheap vino as the original funky cold medina. Marco Nistico is a comic character actor of considerable charm, with a fine baritone and the quick eyes of a confidence man. His best moments came in his Act Two duets with Ms. Dovhan.

Brad Cohen conducted Donizetti's famous score with wit and charm, giving voice to sprightly rhythms and ensuring that the chorus was tight. Mention must also be made of the excellent supertitles by
A. Scott Parry, which helped in translating the action to the high lonesome of the desert.