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Month: September 2023

A LIGHTNING OPERA: FLASH AND DASH PRODUCE A HIT

A LIGHTNING OPERA: FLASH AND DASH PRODUCE A HIT

For our computer era we get the ultimate lightning opera, ideal for commuting city toilers in a perennial rush. All 20 scenes are pressed into 80 minutes of fast-flashing scenes, or four minutes an average segment. You’re carried along as if riding the crest of a wave. Packed in are gigabytes of drama about the flawed genius of the handheld, a brainy superman with super weaknesses. If only he’d have taken time to hold hands more often in his abbreviated…

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HETEROGENEOUS, HILARIOUS, WITH HIP-HOP SEASONING IN THE HALLOWED HALL

HETEROGENEOUS, HILARIOUS, WITH HIP-HOP SEASONING IN THE HALLOWED HALL

Instead of performing Haydn or Handel, the symphony gala this time leaned toward heterogeneity and chutzpah. And yes, even hip-hop made a resounding entry into hallowed Davies Symphony Hall. Unorthodox to say the least. Instead of rows of chaste flowers, the S.F. Symphony this time tried to please everybody: Some classics, some wild-and-woolly rappers, myriad colored lights, and a hugely distracting mid-concert light show. Projected on a giant screen above the orchestra, it offered various French impressionist scenes, fashion models,…

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THE FINE LINES OF CLYNE’S SOUNDS

THE FINE LINES OF CLYNE’S SOUNDS

SANTA CRUZ, CA—The shortest was also the most memorable and newest at this year’s Cabrillo Music Festival: The six-minute world-premiere “Wild Geese” by Anna Clyne as the season-finale number by the orchestra. What I admire most about the petite, soft-spoken English composer is her ability to engage the listener again and again—here, at Cabrillo, Aug. 13, heard for the seventh time (and still being streamed). The current radio-play brings her once again to the forefront. Here she leans in part…

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A Tightened Vengeance Opera

A Tightened Vengeance Opera

The current drama of long-simmering vengeance “Il Trovatore” being a riveting experience is merely part of the story. The SF Opera managed to tighten the action greatly by eliminating two of the three intermissions, playing it in just 2.5 hours—a midweek blessing, especially for those heading to their offices in the morn. One of the heroes was the revolving stage—-yes, stage, take a bow—-enabling lightning-fast scene changes merely by a huge wall rotating from side to side, thereby bridging the…

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