http://newcitystage.com/2009/09/28/review-toscalyric-opera/ Theater, Dance, Comedy and Performance in Chicago Tue, 09 Mar 2010 23:31:21 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 http://newcitystage.com/2009/09/28/review-toscalyric-opera/comment-page-1/#comment-243 Puccini’s Tosca at Lyric Opera, 2009-2010 Sun, 11 Oct 2009 13:43:06 +0000 http://newcitystage.com/?p=6621#comment-243 [...] NewCity Stage also criticizes the principals as miscasting: Soprano Deborah Voigt, a stellar Wagner and Strauss interpreter (neither are being heard in this budget-crunching season) and best known outside of the opera world for her celebrated weight-loss surgery after being fired by Covent Garden because her ample size made her unable to wear a kinky designer’s costume, sang the title role, a strange bit of miscasting. Although Voigt was able to bring some drama to the role of the jealous and temperamental diva, her vocal color was far too heavy for Puccini and seems more suited to Verdi. Even more bizarre was the company’s decision to have Russian tenor Vladimir Galouzine sing the role of Cavaradossi, giving that role a heft and coarseness that became particularly distracting in the love scenes. Bass James Morris who, like Voigt, is most associated with Wagner and sang his marvelous Wotan for Lyric’s only two “Ring” cycles in its history, has been the company’s Scarpia of choice for some time now, but his voice, too, is dark and brooding in the role and he has always been rather wooden in it dramatically. [...] [...] NewCity Stage also criticizes the principals as miscasting: Soprano Deborah Voigt, a stellar Wagner and Strauss interpreter (neither are being heard in this budget-crunching season) and best known outside of the opera world for her celebrated weight-loss surgery after being fired by Covent Garden because her ample size made her unable to wear a kinky designer’s costume, sang the title role, a strange bit of miscasting. Although Voigt was able to bring some drama to the role of the jealous and temperamental diva, her vocal color was far too heavy for Puccini and seems more suited to Verdi. Even more bizarre was the company’s decision to have Russian tenor Vladimir Galouzine sing the role of Cavaradossi, giving that role a heft and coarseness that became particularly distracting in the love scenes. Bass James Morris who, like Voigt, is most associated with Wagner and sang his marvelous Wotan for Lyric’s only two “Ring” cycles in its history, has been the company’s Scarpia of choice for some time now, but his voice, too, is dark and brooding in the role and he has always been rather wooden in it dramatically. [...]

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