— from Artha Kass —
The setting is Las Vegas 1960 for a tale of power, vice and corruption in the Metropolitan Opera’s smashing contemporary production of Verdi’s masterwork, Rigoletto. This Encore screening at Orcas Center Saturday, July 12 at 7:30 pm kicks off the 2014 Summer Encore series.
Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening) makes his Met debut with a new production of Verdi’s Rigoletto. The new staging moves the opera’s tragic events from a decadent 16th-century Italian court to the glitzy, depraved setting of the Las Vegas strip circa 1960.
The boyishly exuberant tenor Piotr Beczala, plays the Duke an amoral lounge singer, as a Frank Sinatra-like playboy in a stylish white tuxedo, grabs a microphone — fake, of course and then sings the aria “Questa o quella” to a rowdy, decadent crowd at the Duke’s gaudy casino. The Duke’s, entourage includes the world-weary comedian Rigoletto, sung by Serbian baritone Željko Lučić. German soprano Diana Damrau sings the role of the innocent Gilda, Rigoletto’s daughter and the victim of the predatory Duke. This Verdi masterwork features one of the most famous arias in all of opera, “La donna è mobile.”
“Metropolitan Opera’s Rat Pack Rigoletto hits a Jackpot.” —WQXR
“Eye-popping sets…brilliant costumes…” —The Wall Street Journal
“Viva Las Verdi!” —The Classical Music Review
Tickets for Rigoletto from The Met: Live in HD Summer Encores are $18 for adults, $13 students, $2 off for Orcas Center members, and may be purchased at www.orcascenter.org or by calling 376-2281 ext. 1 or visiting the Orcas Center Box Office open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from noon – 4 pm. For more information about Orcas Center 2014 season events, please visit www.orcascenter.org.
