Bayreuth’s night of 3 Parsifals
OperaHere’s what the programme says:
Parsifal
Andreas Schager
Tilmann Unger
7.8. (Umbesetzung)
(1. Aufzug)
Klaus Florian Vogt
7.8. (Umbesetzung)
(2. und 3. Aufzug)
What happened?
Schager got sick. Vogt was flown in but missed a flight connection so Unger jumped in for Act 1. Very credibly, spectators say. Vogt took over for the second and third acts. He’s still leading the field as Jump-in of the Year.
I was there. It was not as chaotic as it sounds. Tillman unger was very good but doesn’t have much to do in act1 except look foolish. Act 2 was very much delayed as Vogt caught up on his travels. His entry in this production is to abseil down a wall holding two shields!!!! (Guess it was a stuntman). Florian-Vogt is a major Wagnerian superstar especially in Bayreuth. He is beloved and the excitement of him singing was palpable. He was wonderful. Late finish!! Superb.
Yup, I was also there. Vogt was definitely worth the wait!
I went to a Parsifal at ENO in the 80s under Goodall when the Parsifal was ill and Siegfried Kerusalem stepped in at short notice and performed in German while the rest of the cast sang in English
Siegfried Jerusalem, a great singer. I last heard him as Loge, Siegmund, and Siegfried in a 2002 Wiener Staatsoper “Ring” under Donald Runnicles.
Yes, I remember it well.
Really? His success in Wagner baffles me. I admit live he is far better that the little voice on recordings. It carries, but neither his sound nor his deer in the headlights expression has anything heroic about it. It perfectly find to sing wagner in a brand new way. But KRV is not the direction I imagined things would go. I guess I can give up on a new Melchior coming.
Parsifal, don’t shoot!
It’s the plane with your understudy.
Vogt also received a nice feature article in the NY Times a couple of weeks ago, not noted on this site (unless I missed it).
In December 1959, the Met had a choice of cancelling a „Tristan“ because of a bunch of sick tenors and disappointing an audience there to hear newcomer Birgit Nilsson, or going to extremes.
The announced cast included:
Ramon Vinay (Act I)
Karl Liebl (Act II)
Albert Da Costa (Act III)