DESSAY METROPOLITAN

Natalie Dessay is a French singer and actress who had a highly acclaimed career as an In October, she made her debut in New York in the role of Fiakermilli in Strauss's . One on the performances was aired on.

Sailing ships, frigates and even dirigibles pass by. Her husband, , appeared as her lover's father, Giorgio Germont. Other scenes, such as the opening outside Lammermoor Castle, scarcely seemed to have been directed at all. In December , she was asked to replace in one of the three female roles in a production of Hoffmann at the . As Mr. She is in her element in these scenes, executing maneuvers with a droll comic look and loose physicality. Still, he has genuine Italianate style and an exciting, robust voice. Caesar is shocked. And before she uttered a note, Ms. Zimmerman has imaginative staging ideas and elicits nuanced portrayals from the cast. When she recalled melodic phrases from the love duets, she sang in a voice by turns tremulous, pale, throbbing and unsettlingly brilliant. Levine appeared for curtain calls, Ms. She went on surgery to remove a polyp on her vocal cord and began vocal training subsequently. Dessay, in midphrase, skidded on a floorboard and fell down. Although I do think having a photographer at the wedding is an idea which could have worked very well, the decision to use it during the sextet was misguided. However, Giuseppe Filianoti as Edgardo had got the audience very much on side in his earlier scenes through some very emotionally direct phrasing and acting, so that he was well received. Just as the Romans viewed the Egyptians as exotic others, the British felt at once superior to, and baffled by, the people and customs of India, the Middle East and the other realms they lorded over. Opt out or contact us anytime Instead Ms. Two other celebrated with strong dramatic instincts, Diana Damrau and Anna Netrebko, are scheduled for a revival of this production in the season, and it will be riveting to see how they each make it their own, so incredibly distinctive and successful was Dessay's achievement. But when she heard the bustle of guests approaching, she shook out the wrinkles from her dress, took a whiff of a white camellia, and put on her party face. The actual direction of the singers is rather more variable. In Ms. It was introduced at the Glyndebourne Festival in England in , has played there and elsewhere since then, and is available on DVD. There are aspects of it which are slightly troubling, and certain inconsistencies with the libretto. Dessay appeared in a short crimson cocktail dress, looking haggard and blank faced. It certainly counts as a new Met offering. Order Reprints Today's Paper Subscribe. But nothing had prepared me for the impact she made in the mad scene.