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Strauss's "Der Rosenkavalier" received its first performance of the season last night at the Metropolitan Opera House before an enthusiastic capacity audience. The presence of Lotte Lehmann in the cast as the Marschallin aroused special interest, since this was her sole appearance of the season with the company. Hers was the outstanding portrayal in a presentation that moved with admirable smoothness and was replete with mood despite the fact that for the most part the singing was not of a particularly distinguished order.

Although Miss Lehmann's voice possessed less volume than formerly and was used with caution on top tones, her every phrase was so replete with meaning and so deeply communicative that never has her artistry in the role worked with greater conviction or impressiveness. She has become familiar with every slightest detail of the part to such a pronounced degree that last night there wasn't a moment when her portrayal failed to find her completely identified with the character of the Marschallin down to the slightest vocal inflection and gesture.

There was all of the pathos of lost youth in the monologue before the mirror and particularly outstanding was the profoundly felt singing of the measures describing the stopping of the clocks in the castle. Surely, vocally as well as histrionically, Miss Lehmann's Marschallin remains the most sensitive and deft achievement the Metropolitan has to offer its patrons today and she fully deserved the prolonged ovation accorded her after the first act and at the last curtain.

Nadine Conner's Sophie was not quite up to her earlier standard, being a bit edgier in song and somewhat less compelling as a characterization. Miss Conner has brought more bashful girlishness and subtlety of treatment to the part and her work was consistently effective and charming.

Rise Stevens acted Octavian with spirit, but there was insufficient weightiness in her tones, especially in the lower half of the scale. Emanuel List's voice also sounded lighter than usual in the music of Baron Ochs and, in fact, in the first act trio most of the singing of the three artists concerned failed to be heard clearly. Mr. List's delineation of the burly aristocrat was again commendably more restrained and fine grained than of old and he made the humor of the role compelling without resorting to exaggeration.

Of the lesser roles special mention should be made of the alluring and vivid contribution by Martha Lipton, who made Annina a far more effective element in the opera than others who have attempted the part in recent years. Kurt Baum has delivered the exacting solo of the Singer to better purpose previously, his voice lacking freedom of emission above the staff last night.

Except for Miss Lehmann's Marschallin the lion's share of the performance went to George Szell, who gave a most knowing, finely balanced and sympathetic reading of the orchestral score.

Review 2:

Review of Virgil Thomson in the Herald Tribune

Pastry-Shop Rococo

Strauss's "Der Rosenkavalier," which received its first performance of the season last night at the Metropolitan Opera House, is one of the most popular operas in repertory. It is also, with Lotte Lehmann, Rise Stevens, Nadine Conner, Emanuel List and Kurt Baum in the cast, one of the best productions the Metropolitan does. No wonder it always brings out a packed and cheering crowd. George Szell's animated reading of the score was also, no doubt, a stimulus to last night's audience demonstration.

Experts tell me Miss Lehmann's Marschallin was a "great performance," and I believe them. I believe them because it was at all points musically, as well as dramatically, acceptable. And it seemed to have authority. Actually it was less convincing to me than Miss Conner's Sophie, from the fact the latter's voice is so infinitely clear and touching. Mr. List's Baron Ochs had authority, too. The whole cast was at home in the work and seemed to enjoy it. If my reaction to it all was only lukewarm, that is probably because I have never been able to achieve much connection in this piece between what goes on in the pit and what happens on the stage.

The play is a modest comedy about who gets who. The orchestral framing of it is an avalanche of music. My guest, who had known the opera only by radio, found watching it virtually void of interest. Its mildly titillating pantomime was a disappointment to him, added nothing to the score's already familiar exuberance. And I am inclined to think he has put his finger on the disproportion that has always bothered me. The pastry-shop rococo of the music is delightful because it is so excessive; it reminds one of the fairytales that take place in goody-land, with rock candy mountains and lakes of ice cream and rivers of raspberry syrup. Even so fine a singing artist and so warm a personality as Lotte Lehmann can't easily bring character to life against a score so absurdly succulent.

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