"La Clemenza di Tito," is doing the rounds at the Metropolitan Opera House this season. The Mozart piece has been brought to viewers through the eyes of Jean-Pierre Ponnelle and his work is getting favorable reviews from critics of high theater.
The New York Post wrote:
"Elina Garanca, sleek and beautiful, with a lustrous voice is a splendid interpreter of Sesto she produces luminous sounds that seem to linger suspended in the air like shining pearls. As Tito, Giuseppe Filianoti soared to virile, commanding form, and Barbara Frittoli burned up the stage as the scheming Vitellia. This 'elegant' production is more than the sum of its excellent parts"
Wilborn Hampton of the Huffington Post wrote:
"Garanca has a crystal clear mezzo voice, warm and embracing, that conveys the entire range of Sesto's changing emotions. Her opening act aria 'Parto, parto,' with the accompanying clarinet solo from Anthony McGill, is almost a religious experience... and in the second one Kate Lindsey offers an admirable turn as Annio, who is in love with Sesto's sister, Servilia. Giuseppe Filianoti is commanding in the title role, his solid tenor full of authority and, at the end, compassion. Barbara Frittoli sings Vitellia convincingly, especially in her Act 2 aria 'Non piu di fiori' And in her Metropolitan debut, the English soprano Lucy Crowe is impressive as Servilia. From the opening bars of the rousing and majestic overture, the Met Orchestra plays magnificently throughout under Harry Bicket's baton, and Bradley Brookshire provides excellent harpsichord accompaniment for the recitatives. The Met chorus sings splendidly, and Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's set of ancient Roman columns holds up surprisingly well."
The New York Times wrote:
"As Sesto, Elina Garanca sang with her expected authority and luster. Composed almost to the point of aloofness in the first act, she lashed out at Tito in the second, to genuinely gripping effect."
The Mozart oddball opera at the Met debuted this season on Nov.16 and will have its last show on Monday, Dec. 16.
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