The selection of which language to carry out in appears to be the largest drawback going through operettas. One wants solely to suppose again to the Met’s latest godawful productions of Strauss’s Die Fledermaus and Léhar’s Die Lustige Witwe to know what a depressing expertise poorly performed operetta could be.
I noticed Blythe carry out La Grande-duchesse 5 years earlier than as we speak’s Opera Philadelphia (née Opera Firm of Philadelphia) model in a semi-staged manufacturing on the Kaye Playhouse by the much-missed L’Opéra Français de New York. Carried out by Yves Abel and directed by Christopher Alden, Blythe’s first stab on the position featured dialogue in English whereas the music was sung within the unique French. This mishmash strategy is usually used; nonetheless, Opera Philadelphia selected to do its Offenbach totally in English. I’ll go away it to listeners of as we speak’s providing to determine how nicely this strategy works.
A pair of earlier Offenbach operettas introduced right here used different choices: Frederica von Stade’s live performance La Périchole skipped the dialogue in favor of a narration learn by Madeline Kahn, whereas a Geneva staging of La Belle Hélène starring Véronique Gens within the title position in fact did your complete present in French. And Jennie Tourel preceded Blythe in loving navy males when the American Opera Society introduced her as La Grande-duchesse in 1959.
Offenbach: La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein—in English
Grande-Duchesse: Stephanie Blythe
Wanda: Kristine Biller
Olga: Karen Blanchard
Amelie: Rebecca Whitlow
Charlotte: Susan Polack
Fritz: Gordon Gietz
Common Boum: Kevin Glavin
Baron Puck: Douglas Perry
Prince Paul: Daniel Belcher
Nepomuc: Ubaldo Feliciano-Hernandez
Baron Grog: Michael Riley
Conductor: Emanuel Joel
Opera Firm of Philadelphia
April 2004
Broadcast
Pleased New 12 months from Chris’s Cache
La Grande-duchesse could be downloaded by clicking on the icon of a cloud with an arrow pointing downward on the audio participant above and the ensuing mp3 file will seem in your obtain listing.
By no means miss an episode of Chris’s Cache! Subscribe to this podcast by way of Apple Podcasts or RSS.
