The Met’s Aida opens to bad omens
OperaA tenor who was audibly below par, an extra who fell into an archaeological dig and a production that failed to justify its investment…. all went wrong at the New Year’s opening of Verdi’s Aida.
David Wright in NY Classical Review:
As the fedora-hatted archaeologist was lowered into the Egyptian temple to begin the Metropolitan Opera’s performance of Verdi’s Aida Tuesday night, he took a tumble while disengaging from his rope.
That was only the first misstep in a new production that already had the misfortune to follow a legend, and then came up with few reasons to do so.
Zachary Woolfe in the NY Times:
It was possible to take the measure of the staging on opening night, but more difficult to evaluate the cast, which was dominated by the ailing, unaccountably performing Piotr Beczala.
From his labored opening aria as the Egyptian warrior Radamès, this usually superb tenor was obviously sick, and it was announced at the end of intermission that he was recovering from a bad cold. Why, then, did the Met’s administration let him go on in the first place — and then return in the second half?
Kevin Ng in the Times (London):
Dmitry Belosselskiy as Ramfis also seemed to be ill, alternating alarmingly between a resonant bass and a woofy, muffled sound.
The Broadway director Michael Mayer’s new production, with sets by Christine Jones, nods to the opera’s European imperialist history by framing it as an archaeologist’s excavation. This directorial flourish adds little but serves as an intermittent distraction, and it doesn’t manage to cover up the fact that it’s essentially the old staging with a few added projections. The stiff, shiny costumes (by Susan Hilferty) and inane choreography (Oleg Glushkov) force the singers into a narrow strip at the front of the stage, where they are left to stand and sing as if in concert. It’s telling that Mayer’s first Met production set Rigoletto in Las Vegas — this Aida resembles a light show at the Luxor Hotel & Casino.
Heidi Waleson, Wall Street Journal: You know you’re in trouble when a grand new production of Verdi’s “Aida” only catches fire midway through the second act, after the “Triumphal March”—when Amonasro shows up.
The whole thing was shocking. Genuinely shocking. I’ve never heard the Met in quite such dire straits.
Beczala acquitted himself reasonably well at least as heard on the radio. A couple notes down the octave and some rough sounds but hardly a disaster. We’ve all heard worse.
There are mics on stage for radio/tv broadcasts, every opera singer sounds good mic’ed as long as they don’t need to project into a hall
One doesn’t pay 100$ to listen to a tenor, singing an octave lower
Not much worse. It was evident from Celeste Aida that he was in real trouble above the passagio. Did Gelb think I (or anyone else) would be disappointed if Beczala didn’t go on? No I was disappointed I’d paid $450 to hear bad singing. No cover? I bet there was and whoever would have been better. It was absolutely painful to watch poor Beczala struggling through. He dropped an octave on a few notes and was very smart but it was pretty wretched. Someone is responsible – him or Gelb.
You should have been in the house. As my grandmother would have said (about Beczala), “They did him dirty”.
Regardless of a new production, Aida is old rope so it’s hardly surprising a performer fell from one.
Presumably he went on because he would not get paid otherwise and the company knew they could just about get away with him going on as he did – thus avoiding the additional expense of finding a box-office-friendly replacement at short notice.
“box-office-friendly replacement” was not needed. It was sold out days before. There was a cover who, by internet accounts, has sung Radames several times previously.
Companies almost never put covers on. Covers are simply rehearsal covers with the exception of some smaller companies. Big companies usually bring in a singer of similar fame / fee structure to the one who is indisposed for fear of complaint from the public who have overpaid to see the usually overpaid stars. The public are rarely informed about this but it is standard policy in most companies. Musical and vocal abilities, standards and singer welfare are now bottom of the priority list in most companies.
Gee Officer Krupke, we don’t get no overpaying to hear da singaz. But we from da Bronx don’t appreciate being rooked by management who should have sent on da cover.
There’s no way they ever would have stepped in and told him not to go on.
Not true. During the Volpe years at the Met, with rare exception, covers often went on for the announced singer. It wasn’t until Gelb instituted his star-only cover system (I use the term “star” with reservations) that rehearsal covers ceased to function as they were intended.
Another example of Gelb’s silly waste of money.
It seems so much has changed for the worse since the Volpe era.
Not necessarily so. Beczala was sick for last year’s Carmen premiere on New Year’s Eve (I was there), and a relative unknown covered. Having said that, I cut Piotr some slack because he has always been great in everything I’ve ever seen him in. He was in fantastic voice just a few weeks ago during his Carnegie Hall recital.
Good point. I think in fairness to Beczala, he is a thoroughly reliable artist and I don’t think the Met or any other company would ever step in and tell him he can’t go on. Sometimes a performer can have a bad night. Happens to the best of them!
I attended the dress rehearsal and the opening. It just got worse and worse.
What genius thought it was a good idea to allow an ailing singer to jeopardize not only his own voice, but the health of everyone on stage? Did the Artistic Administrator not think to hire a cover for a principal role (of a major new production)?
The only saving grace was Angel Blue, whose considerable contributions were diminished by sub-par colleagues, sub-par direction, and a sub-par mise en scène.
I saw the last performance of the old AIDA and it looked tired, as it should have after 30 years of reliable and considerable revenue-generating service.
MR. GELB, AIDA, LIKE BOHEME, TOSCA, TRAVIATA, AND TURANDOT ARE REPERTORY WORKS THAT SHOULD BE TREATED AS SUCH. THEY GENERATE AUDIENCE REVENUE AND THEIR COSTS CAN BE AMORTIZED OVER THEIR LIFE ON STAGE. THE MET IS A REPERTORY HOUSE. LOOK IT UP.
Whenever I think the Met has hit a new low, Peter Gelb proves me wrong.
At the Met, the singer doesn’t get paid until after Act 1-or at intermission. A lot of expenses are run up during that rehearsal periods and the this is the result.
You may be Tiredofitall but this comment is bang on the money.
Thanks. I’ve seen to much from the inside. More than I can say…
I am currently rereading Joe Volpes book about his time as Met GM. Unlike Gelb he was a man of the theater.
An absolute disgrace from start to finish. One can only assume Gelb is as blinded by his power as one can be. Shame on the board for continuing to support this buffoon and his puppet YNS.
Why does the Met contunually replace brilliant productions with duds? (Der Rosenkavalier, Tosca, Carmen, Aida)?
This is right. One thing we can say with assurance is that Gelb has done exactly what you say. Zeffirelli’s magnificent Tosca replaced with Bondi’s then they hastily replaced THAT with McVicar’s which is Zeffirelli’s on a slight angle. Carmen? I’ll never go to that travesty of a production (from the UK!) again. The Ring? Don’t get me started.
Agree. I read somewhere that replacing the grand beloved productions is in part because gelb wants productions that are easier and less staff intensive to get on and off stage , saving time and dollars.
Many of the newer productions are not cost-saving. The problem is, Gelb has never understood stagecraft.
From day one, Gelb declared that he intended to replace all existing productions, even those sight unseen.
Akin to Musk spreading his progeny. Ego.
Absolutely right! If anything, Gelb has cost the Met more money in overtime because of the novices he hires.
It goes far deeper than Gelb not understanding stagecraft, he does not understand or comprehend the most important part of an opera house: THE SINGING.
Because the brilliant productions were pre-regie and Gelb believes it’s not important to be good, it’s important to be relevant.
I’ve heard bad Aidas but this was on a different level. Yekes!
Well, I pray to the Egyptian gods they won’t ever retire Zeffirelli’s “Turandot”.
I think both Turandot and Boheme are safe, for now…..
Want another shot? Go to Baltimore in mid-June to hear a concert performance conducted by Jonathan Heyward, with Angel Blue (yes), Jamie Barton, Limmie Pulliam, but presumably no horses.
There was a cover ready to go for Beczala, there are always covers ready to go for principal artists at the Met. Always.The cover would have likely been paid a fifth of what Beczala was getting, so there were no financial considerations there. If they didn’t want the cover on stage, he could have sung it from the proscenium with Beczala walking it. That has happened before. Beczala would have been paid his fee contractually after a certain point no matter what, so that wasn’t a real consideration either.
And Beczala wasn’t the only singer that should have been replaced. They should have taken out the Ramfis and Amneris as well. The whole thing was a grotesque shambles.
Question. What language were Ramfis and Amneris singing in? They made Sutherlands Italian sound like Franco Corellis….
The authentic Egyptian, of course…
“Aida” is especially popular with directors now, since they can subject it to “critical interrogation.”
If Amneris was singing in Italian it was a surprise to me. Good voice mind you and dramatically did the kind of “Stand and Deliver” singing this production inflicted on us better than most.
The archeologists’ looting scene replacing the trimphal march made me physically pained and heartsick.
Is Belosselskiy usually any better? I saw him as Gremin at ROH in October and he sounded exactly as described here, with a vibrato you could drive a truck through.
Audibly below par? It was like taking 7 shots on a par 3
Not a good sign when the announcement that one of the singer’s is sick comes *after* the 1st act rather than before. Almost like they’re explaining away/providing an excuse rather than kindly letting the audience know. (Also, isn’t that what understudies are for?)
Franco Corelli was nervous before a performance of Aida. My teacher, Rod MacWherter, was told to prepare in case Corelli backed out. Rod told me when Corelli saw him in costume, ready to go on in his place, Corelli mustered up the courage to go on.
Was there another tenor ready in costume?
Corelli usually had his wife around to push him on. I am the sure the sight of an understudy did the job just as well. In Jerome Hines recollection Corelli who at 6 ft 2 was 4 inches shorter than Hines insisted on higher heels. Franco was the cock of the show!!
Rod MacWherter! A name I haven’t heard in years. Before his Met debut, he sang a number of roles for my father’s professional opera company in New Jersey. A still have a few photos of him as Radames, around late 60s, early 70s.
According to one of Corelli’s covers I knew, he would often take a morning walk. If he sneezed, he would consider cancelling!
Rod MacWherter was the Flavio in the 1970 production of NORMA with Sutherland, Horne and — as Pollione — Carlo Bergonzi. I remember MacWherter had a larger voice and larger body than the tenor star Bergonzi — so the stage blocking prudently kept them standing and singing far apart.
Why was Beczala allowed to sing this role in the first place. He doesn’t have the right voice for the role. Just because he wants to expand his repertoire, doesn’t mean he should sing this character.
One day maybe Tetelman will sing it. He does have the right voice.
He first sang the role in Salzburg in 2022. I didn’t attend but the reviews were positive.
Could you please tell, who would be good for this role nowadays? I believe I heard most of modern tenors live, and all of them were lacking something important…
Wholeheartedly agree. Beczala was an excellent lyric tenor 10-30 years ago, doing a great job in roles like Alfredo, the Duke and others by composers like Lehár and Mozart. However, even in this repertoire, his abilities above the Passagio have gone in the last few years, which is to be expected at his age.
Regardless, the voice remains of lyric timbre and size and it is irresponsible for anybody to be casting him as Radamès, Andrea Chénier, or Lohengrin
Always back stage drama at the Met. Maybe this was the Met’s way of getting rid of Beczala? He has given many dreadful performances over the last few years and will probably be ashamed to show his face in New York again.
Opera Wire’s review is devastating and hopes the New Year will be better for Met patrons. Sorry, not as long as Ann Zinff remains in charge. You’ve got a rich socialite who designs jewelry in charge, probably because she donates the most money. Bad move. They need someone who is financially responsible.
Maybe they shoulda previewed it in Pittsburgh for another week.
And no elephants?
Here is the NYTimes review unlocked :
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/01/arts/music/review-met-opera-verdi-aida.html?unlocked_article_code=1.mE4.kyjc.NHnEWWZKPVaL&smid=url-share
Why on earth they have to do such complicated productions that gets in the way of a singer trying to sing, I just don’t know. All in your face. Where are people’s imaginations these days? Anything that puts the singer off is just plain wrong. i was going to go and see this in the cinema in England, but by the sounds of it not worth it.
It would appear that Michael Mayer is determined to butcher one Verdi masterpiece after another. Ghastly Rigoletto, set in Vegas; Dead on arrival , garish La Traviata with misguided decision to cast thin voiced , nasal Juan Diego Flores as Alfredo, and now this travesty of Aida. What is next on his chopping block? Il Trovatore set in brothel or Don Carlo in a Squid Game ?
I have read Volpe’s autobiography. This was a guy who started as a gas station owner who got into stagehand work and whose specialty was carpentry and stage sets. He became director of the MET through sheer ambition while knowing little about music and opera. And…because he knew enough to go to the experts for what he did not know, like decisions about the instrumental and vocal music (Whatever you can say about James Levine he did know music). Nevertheless, it is a shame that the production sets at the MET has become more important than the music. (Did this start under Volpe?). The difference between attending live opera and a live rock concert is that most of the audience at the opera is more interested in the MUSIC than in the lighting, dancing, or general ambience. Especially for those like myself who know little about music the super sophisticated staging is very distracting.