"La Traviata" at the Met

Act II from the Met Opera Franco Ziffirelli "La Traviata

Metropolitan Opera. New York City. April 24, 2010. Saturday night’s performance at the Metropolitan Opera of Verdi’s “La Traviata,” was sterling. I’ve seen this opera more times than I’ve attended any other opera, and some time ago, I said I wouldn’t easily go again. However, recently I’ve seen a lot of unfamiliar operas (e.g., Armida, The First Emperor, Julius Caesar, Thais, The Pearl Fisher) and I yearned for a familiar warhorse. When I learned that the Met was reviving its elaborate Franco Zeffirelli production, and with a stellar cast, and that I was in New York at the same time, I couldn’t resist. It was a good decision. I reveled in hearing gorgeous familiar arias and singers of transcendent beauty. Hei-Kyung Hong, the Korean soprano, was ravishing both in looks and voice; the six foot five inch tall James Valenti from nearby Summit, NJ, making his Met debut this season, was a dashing Alfredo with a tenor voice which should endow him with a big career; and the veteran Thomas Hampson gave the impressive performance we’ve come to expected from him. Next season, the Met will have a new production of La Traviata by Willy Decker. Zeffirelli’s luxurious sets and costumes will be replaced by a nearly blank stage and the action and dress updated to modern times. Zeffirelli and I have been fossilized.