Review: ‘La Traviata’ Opens a New Era at the Met Opera

I was there. I enjoyed the production, and thought Damrau was brilliant (yes, after a bit of a warmup) and also brought some nuances to Sempre Libra that are usually missing from other Violettas at twice the volume. Same for JDF, there were aspects of shyness in the brindisi which i think would have been lost in a full-out reading with a larger voice. Maestro Nezet seguin's work was wonderful, again, there was sublety in a work that being performed so frequently often lends itself to nothing more than a reading. I was grateful for that. And yes, the silent girl in act II was a mistake.

A pointless review. How much is the met paying Tommasini? Damrau is clearly on the decline and not suitable for Violetta. And JDF should not be anywhere within 50 miles of a Verdi role.

The Met pulled out all the stops this evening. Incandescent experience. Bravi all!

Was at the performance. Agree with the Florez critique. I thought Damrau was extremely touching especially her " Ama mi Alfredo" heartbreaking in its emotional appeal. At times there was a bit of over emotion on her part. Elder Germont in many ways stole the show. I found the set a bit disturbing especially the bed constantly in every scene. It was an awkward intrusion especial in the scene at Floria's party. The silent daughter in the final scene was a puzzlement as she walked across the stage as Violetta was dying. Overall a wonderfully musical evening with the great Met orchestra and the spirited conductor.

How many times must we hear from Tomassini about "the robust baritone," "the plush-voiced" mezzo, or in this case, soprano? These generic metaphors give use no sense of the particular timbres or tonal qualities of singers today.

I'm glad the demanding critic Mr. Tommasini liked this new Verdi. I was saddened by his condemnation of *Samson and Dalila", a performance that my wife and I admired. Sure, we don't know as much as this critic, but we could find merit in what was done. Mr Tommasini is an odd man to find so much displeasure in so much beauty. We look forward to La Traviata in our local theatre. Cheers!

Couldn't have come at a better time.

[Yes, I was there.] This is the Met not the Salburg Festival. Is having a scene change too much to ask for? Ah, the bed in the middle of the set the entire night.....how deep! I'm still lost pondering it, NOT. Perhaps worse than the cockface fixatiion in the last production. Having said that, Yannick Nézet-Séguin gave a fine, engaged, energetic, fresh performance. Welcome aboard maestro, save us, we beseech thee.

In a famous video about Maria Callas, Franco Zeffirelli --who directed her in a legendary, world famous "La Traviata" -- stated that the high point of the opera was not at the end of Act Three when Violetta dies, but rather the end of Act Two after the grueling, heartbreaking scene between Violetta and Germont, Alfredo's father. Here, Violetta is confronted by him and forced to make a horrendous sacrifice of giving up her future life with Alfredo for the good of Alfredo's family's social reputation and good name. By her staying with him , Violetta will stain the family with her courtesan past,harm Alfredo future prospects in life, and threaten the pending engagement of his sister. This is a powerhouse, gut wrenching scene between the two. The director Michael Mayer has made a major mistake here bringing in Alfredo's younger sister ( who does not exist in the libretto), to stand silently throughout the scene by her father. At this point, she is a meaningless distraction for the audience, and takes away from the overall power of this great scene, which is the turning point of the opera.

Expect to decide for myself on Friday night. Here is a point about the Germont-Violetta confrontation. First he tries the approach: save my family from scandal else my daughter won't be able to marry. She resists. Then Germont, obviously aware of her illness, hits her with: your beauty will fade, Alfredo will tire of you and leave you. He implies a pre-preemptive abandonment is her only course. This always gives me the chills. When she agrees to leave Alfredo, of course she hangs the decision on the fate of the young girl. This is understandable but somewhat disingenuous. BTW, I liked the Willy Decker production, especially w/ Sonya Yoncheva, once or twice. But it couldn't be the staple Trav.

Perhaps the presence of Germont’s daughter is not real. The premise, after all, is that Violeta is imagining (dreaming?) these events on her deathbed. Including a real daughter in the dream could be seen as justifying, or even just explaining, her behavior toward Alfredo. She did make a rather significant decision without consulting him.

Bringing up the James Levine issue was unnecessary and crass. This should be a review of a new opera production with a new music director; nothing more

I couldn't help wondering how the director's "four seasons" concept fits in with the fact that Acts II and III take place on the same day/evening ?

Sorry to say, but I think Tomassini was being a slight bit little over generous to this performance in some aspects of his review. Damrau was indeed excellent, but was a little weak in the beginning until she warmed up by the second act. That said, her “Amami Alfredo” was faultless and heartbreaking. Agree for the most part on JDF but even at his best moments, would have preferred a solid Verdi tenor more steeped in the repertoire. And completely agree on the staging: the static set (despite some dynamism with the lighting and some movable parts of the scene) became a bit boring a few hours into the performances. Additionally, with regard to the silent actress portraying Mademoiselle Germont, the concept was very interesting but having her stand silently during the Act II confrontation between Germont and Violetta felt superfluous and unnecessary as did her appearance at the deathbed at the end (totally period inappropriate). All this said, excited about YNS’s youth, energy, and enthusiasm. In bocca al lupo!