Glyndebourne’s Bohème will have Chinese tenor, Chilean soprano
OperaNext summer’s opera festival will have a new Bohème, directed by Floris Visser. The cast is led by Chinese tenor Long Long and Chilean soprano Yaritza Véliz as Rodolfo and Mimì, with South African soprano Vuvu Mpofu returning to Glyndebourne as Musetta.
Globalisation gone a bit far? Glyndebourne prides itself on green credentials. In the new no-fly era they should think of reducing airmiles.
In the other frontline offering, Ethel Smyth’s The Wreckers, French mezzo soprano Clémentine Margaine stars as Thirza with German baritone Markus Brück as her husband Pascoe and Mexican tenor Rodrigo Porras Garulo as her lover Mark. The Australian soprano Lauren Fagan takes the role of Avis with British bass-baritone James Rutherford as the lighthouse keeper Lawrence.
That covers all five continents in just two operas.
So casting that is little different from other venues. If you can’t have anything positive to say sometimes better to say nothing?
Yes, having a wholly local cast would cut down on airmiles. As would not having touring orchestras, overseas soloists, non-local conductors, and all international competitions. And giving up your own foreign holidays Norman.
I trust you advocate all of these on environmental grounds, or is this just directed against a Chinese Tenor and a Chilean Soprano performing in UK ?
Outsourcing singers, hahaha
Yaritza Véliz was an excellent Musetta and will surely be a superb Mimi. Markus Brück and James Rutherford are also great catches.
How do you know they still live in China, Chile or South Africa? They could be living in Europe!
Yaritz Véliz came to the ROH on the Jette Parker programme. She might still be living in the country.
Indeed, Long Long appears to be based in Germany and has just finished an ensemble contract in Hannover.
In Surrey, even!
In Surrey, even!
So Glyndebourne is either Eurocentric/a bastion of white supremacy/choose your insult, or it’s destroying the planet?
Can’t win.
And poor James Rutherford as the token Brit.
…who lives in Germany.
It makes sense to me that if you want extraordinary opera you best employ the current best at least. It’s unfortunate that British residents aren’t all the best opera singers on earth . It’s tragic that we’re not the best at everything, so, in the meantime, I’ll include the rest of the planet and see that as a priority in the carbon footprint steaks….it’s not like it’s an entire football team plus a support team or the entire British Olympic and Paralympic team now is it. In a perfect world the combustion engine would never have been invented. Seeing as other forms of long distance travel are still out of reach I’ll go for compromise rather than absolutism.
Long Long was a member of the opera studio in Munich, and then on contract in Hanover, and much of his guest work has been in Germany at theatres such as Hamburg, Berlin Komische Oper, Frankfurt etc. I think it fair to assume (though please correct me if I am wrong) that he has made Germany his home for the time being. If Glyndebourne can’t bring singers in from Germany (and by implication that would also exclude singers from the rest of the EU and everywhere else) then god help Glyndebourne.
Nothing new there Norman. A random look in the past shows a Met 1946 Othello with:
Torsten Ralf from Sweden
Stella Roman from Romania
Leonard Warren from USA
Alessio DePaolis from Italy
Fritz Busch from Germany
Cultural Appropriation!!!!!!
I’m highly OFFENDED!
When will the riots and burning of Glyndebourne commence?!?!
Better to fly the singers one at a time to the audiences that gather at Glyndebourne (or anywhere), than to fly the audiences to all those countries!
Just saw the screened version. Liked the typewriter (but he called it his ‘pen!)
Close-ups a bit unkind of lead lady singer