Week 17: 5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know about Opera
1. Who set the world record for the longest applause? A: Placido Domingo
When performing the title role in Guiseppe Verdi’s Otello in Vienna on July 30, 1991, Plácido Domingo received 101 curtain calls and an 80-minute standing ovation, setting the world record at the time for the longest applause.
Domingo sings “Esultate” from a 1976 Paris production of Otello: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QslZijfW2zE
2. What NFL kicker also sings opera? A: Justin Tucker
Justin Tucker is the kicker for the NFL team the Baltimore Ravens who also happens to be a classically-trained baritone. He is the most accurate kicker in NFL history. While attending the University of Texas and playing for the Texas Longhorns football team, he majored in Music.
On the Field: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSHu1BaF750
On the Stage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93s9pHGUpjY
3. What Richard Strauss opera was banned at The Metropolitan Opera? A: Salome Strauss’s Salome debuted at the Metropolitan Opera on January 1907. The opera is coupled with Christian biblical themes with erotic scenes that shocked opera audiences. The opera includes incest, nudity, murder and a kissing scene between Salome and John the Baptist’s severed head. The “Dance of the Seven Veils” was and is infamous for its overt erotic and suggestive detail.
After its premiered the following performances were cancelled, and it wasn’t brought back to the Met stage until 1934. Read more about the scandal here: https://www.operanews.com/operanews/issue/article.aspx?id=174&issueID=9&archive=true
Nationale Opera & Ballet’s 2017 production of Salome: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oVaIuMI0II 4. How many operas did Beethoven write? A: 1 B: 2 C: 3 D: 4
Beethoven only wrote one opera in his musical career, Fidelio. Originally titled Leonore, oder Der Triumph der ehelichen Liebe (Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love). He worked on it for 10 years, revising it two different times. It original version premiered in 1805 in Vienna, and the final version was premiered in 1814.
It part due to his growing deafness, but mostly for the difficulty and frustration he encountered writing and producing opera, he swore never to write another opera again.
The “Prisoners’ Chorus” from Bergen Nasjonale Opera’s 2013 production: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReSwAZ8jNyQ
5. What massively popular opera was a huge flop when it opened? A: Madama Butterfly
The first performance of Puccini’s opera Madama Butterfly in February 1904 at La Scala was one of opera’s all-time worst flops. The audience made bird, cow, and goat calls and booed, despite having singers such as Rosina Storchio and Giuseppe De Luca. This was due in part to Puccini completing the opera late, which didn’t allow for adequate time to rehearsals.
Since its premiere, there have been 5 versions of this opera. The original two-act opera was in February 1904, followed by the May 1904 version which has three acts and had a more well- received premiered. The third version that premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 1906, and then another version was performed in 1907 in Paris. The last and now known as the “standard version” debut in 1907.
“The Love Duet” from The Metropolitan Opera’s production: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_FIITtUP_c