[Met Performance] CID:189120



Turandot
Metropolitan Opera House, Sat, November 4, 1961




Turandot (44)
Giacomo Puccini | Giuseppe Adami/Renato Simoni
Turandot
Birgit Nilsson

Cal?f
Richard Tucker

Li?
Lucine Amara

Timur
Ezio Flagello

Ping
Frank Guarrera

Pang
Robert Nagy

Pong
Gabor Carelli

Emperor Altoum
Alessio De Paolis

Mandarin
Calvin Marsh

Prince of Persia
Edilio Ferraro

Servant
Thomas Russell

Servant
Craig Crosson

Servant
Harry Jones

Executioner
Howard Sayette

Executioner
Richard Zelens

Executioner
William Burdick


Conductor
Leopold Stokowski


Production
Yoshio Aoyama

Director
Nathaniel Merrill

Designer
Cecil Beaton

Choreographer
Mattlyn Gavers





Turandot received eight performances this season.

Review 1:

Review of Robert Sabin in the December 1961 issue of Musical America

Richard Tucker sang his first Calaf at the Metropolitan at the season's first performance of "Turandot." He has the ringing top voice and stentorian production for the role, but interestingly and gratifyingly enough, his most impressive singing at this performance was in the lyrical passages. The climaxes were a bit dry and pinched in quality, but the voice as a whole had a new richness of color and expressiveness.

Another newcomer to his role was Mr. Flagello, as Timur, and he gave deeply moving performance. Miss Amara's specialty is high, gleaming, faultlessly supported top tones, and therefore she reveled in Liu's exquisite phrases, so wonderfully blended and colored with the orchestral instruments.

Though I did not mention Miss Nilsson first, she was, of course, the overwhelming feature of the evening.

The others were familiar in their roles. Mr. Stokowski seemed tired, and the performance lacked the smashing power and brilliance of last season's performances, although, as always, he elicited lush and beautiful sounds from the orchestra. The stage brass could not apparently see his beat (given without stick) and wavered in several places, though no such catastrophe occurred as did at one performance last season. when they came in fortissimo in the wrong place! Cecil Beaton's decor seemed as lovely as ever.



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