Pale moon reviews 2017
Her character managed to tantalize Herod who was sure she could be satisfied with a large jewel or, at most, a small province to rule. She has the dramatic vocal ability to surmount Strauss’s huge orchestra and project her silver-toned soprano throughout a huge hall. Great Salomes can also come from the Italian dramatic tradition and Racette isn’t just a sex kitten. Having grown from lyric to dramatic status by way of Puccini and Verdi rather then Wagner, Racette’s voice has a different sound for Strauss than the ones we heard from Nilsson, Rysanek, or Mattila. Later, she plays a physical game with the gruesome, natural-looking head of the prophet. This princess plays mental games with Jochanaan and with Herod. Racette’s interpretation makes her Salome younger than the characters portrayed by many of her famous colleagues of the past. Patricia Racette’s Salome is an impetuous teenage princess who interrupts the royal routine on a cloudy night by demanding to see her stepfather’s famous prisoner. Rodell Rosel, Josh Wheeker, Brian Michael Moore, Carlos Enrique Santelli, and Gabriel Vamvulecu were most energetic as the Five Jews. Other cast members who added measurably to the value of this performance were: Nicholas Brownlee as the First Soldier and Kihun Yoon as the First Nazarene. Unfortunately, he seemed to lack any semblance of romanticism that might have made him attractive to the teenage princess. TÛmas TÛmasson was a rough and rugged Jokanaan, physically and vocally. As the Page, Katarzyna Sadej sang with a sweet sound that could barely be heard over the eighty-four-piece orchestra. Reports of his Otello in Mexico make him a tenor to watch. Issachah Savage, a promising young dramatic tenor, sang Narraboth’s lines with shining bronze tones. Sara Jean Tosetti’s costumes encased Salome in layers of jewel-toned chiffon, wrapped Herod and Herodias in bright brocades and clothed the soldiers in stiff, braid-trimmed jackets and skirts.Īllan Glassman (center front) as Herod, with Gabriele Schnaut (second from left) as Herodias The sky was filled with clouds surrounding a pale moon that crept almost imperceptibly across the sky during the course of the opera. Its newly refurbished version directed by David Paul featured a dark platform that held the necessary cistern. On February 18, 2017, Los Angele Opera presented Richard Strauss’s Salome backed by a set originally designed by John Bury for Peter Hall’s 1986 production at the Music Center.