ArtsSF

SANTA FE, NM—-The last of the great romantic-era operas, in all its opulence, is arguably Richard Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier,” launched just before that epic, revolutionary “Rite of Spring”—yet with a libertine plot people found offensive, right from the first scene showing a married woman lolling in bed with her lover. A palatial opera so costly that most US troupes can never afford to mount it, it is riding high at the Santa Fe Opera Festival. It is produced to the…

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SANTA FE, NM—-The summer-season opera festival came up with a wealth of talent that could sing and act on an international level—-no mean feat, given the eight principals in Mozart’s “Don Giovanni.” Hearing and seeing this drama about the fascinating, rapacious daredevil brightens the week spent in this breath-taking site 7,000 Feet up in the sky. At least until Don Giovanni, who is somewhere between Zorro, Casanova and the Lone Ranger, is ultimately dragged off to judgment and perdition in…

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SANTA FE, NM—-One of the finest new operas of our era provides an inspiring human drama about our own urban lives, which are flawed (except for yours, of course). This is the world-premiere opus “The Righteous,” which through the genius of librettist Tracy K. Smith airs a catalogue of 15 or so social issues through the lives of nine characters. And what could be more timely than the emergence of women’s roles along with critiquing politicians’ shallow behavior? Somehow, the…

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