David Pittsinger and Georgia Jarman in Don Giovanni.(Photo by Gaston de Cardenas)By Greg StepanichFORT LAUDERDALE – More so than most operas, Don Giovanni presents its audience with a puzzle: Is it a tragedy or a comedy?The Romantics of the 19th century saw it as an exercise in decadence and darkness, and until recently it was common to leave out the final scene, … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: May 6-8
Morris Robinson as the Commendatorein Florida Grand Opera’s Don Giovanni.Music: This weekend, Florida Grand Opera is running more like a repertory company than its normal mode of one show at one time. Its productions of David DiChiera’s Cyrano and Mozart’s Don Giovanni are running tomorrow and Sunday afternoon, respectively, at the Ziff Ballet Opera House in … [Read more...]
Music reviews: Confident ‘Creation,’ strong ‘Turandot,’ elegant Mozart
Soprano Maria Jette. Here are capsule reviews of three recent classical music events:Master Chorale of South Florida (Nov. 20, Wold Center for the Performing Arts, Boca Raton)The Creation is one of Franz Joseph Haydn’s finest works, and even in the abridged version the Master Chorale of South Florida presented Saturday night, the beauty and vigor of this … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: Nov. 13-14
Jane’s Book of Fighting (1985), by Raymond Pettibon.Art: The art of Raymond Pettibon is intimately tied to the punk culture of California, which perhaps isn’t surprising considering that his brother, Greg Ginn, founded Black Flag. This weekend at Florida Atlantic University, the college hosts Raymond Pettibon: The Punk Years 1978-86, featuring … [Read more...]
ArtsPreview 2010-11: The season in opera
Anthony Roth Costanzo,who will sing Orfeo for Palm Beach Opera.(Illustration by Pat Crowley) By Greg StepanichSouth Florida’s two chief opera companies mostly played it safe at the box office last season when it came to repertoire, with dueling productions of Bizet’s Carmen closing both companies’ offerings.But Palm Beach Opera and Florida Grand Opera also took some … [Read more...]
Opera review: Sometimes brilliant, sometimes silly, FGO’s ‘Carmen’ still bold, colorful
Kendall Gladen and Adam Diegel in Act IV of Carmen.(Photo by Gaston de Cardenas) By Greg StepanichThe Florida Grand Opera closed its 69th season Saturday night in Fort Lauderdale with a production of Georges Bizet’s Carmen that was sometimes brilliant, sometimes risible, but that also offered reliably good singing and enough dramatic punch to give it real … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: May 14-16
Jamey Sheridan and Steve Buscemi in Handsome Harry.Film: The big noise this weekend comes from Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood, a far better movie than we expected, but if you are in the mood for something smaller and more low-key, head to Emerging Cinemas in Lake Worth or Mos’Art Theatre in Lake Park to see Handsome Harry, a drama about looking back over one’s life, … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: April 23-25
Gianni Di Gregorio and the ladies of Mid-August Lunch.Film: Yes, you could check out the foreign movies at the 2010 Palm Beach International Film Festival, which continues through Monday, but it seems unlikely that it has an entry as enjoyable as Mid-August Lunch, opening Friday at several area theaters. This puckish Italian comedy stars writer-director Gianni … [Read more...]
Opera review: FGO’s ‘Lucia’ has good lead, iffy concept
Eglise Gutiérrez and Israel Lozano in Lucia di Lammermoor.By Greg StepanichFlorida Grand Opera’s current production of Gaetano Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor has reimagined this opera in a way that falls short of success, but fortunately it does have a soprano in the lead role whose singing is strong enough to carry the heavy lifting of the Mad Scene and much else … [Read more...]
ArtsPreview 2009-10: The season in opera
Carl Tanner as Otello. (Illustration by Pat Crowley)By Greg StepanichThe coming opera season has been scaled back somewhat in both of the major local companies, but opera devotees will still have plenty to look forward to.In addition to the seven local productions, there will be five others from two different trunk companies, and 11 high-definition broadcasts of live … [Read more...]