Der Rosenkavalier Is the May 13, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast

Summary: The May 13, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is Der Rosenkavalier, a three-act comic opera by Richard Strauss.

The 2016-2017 Met Opera season's new production of Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss airs as the Met Opera's Saturday matinee broadcast May 13, 2017: Meet Me At The Opera @MMATOpera, via Twitter Nov. 25, 2016

Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose), a three-act, late Romantic-style, comic opera by German composer Richard Georg Strauss (June 11, 1864-Sept. 8, 1949), is the May 13, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast.

Austrian librettist and writer Hugo Laurenz August Hofmann von Hofmannsthal (Feb. 1, 1874-July 15, 1929) (Oct. 11, 1857-Nov. 21, 1937) wrote the original German libretto. The literary sources are Les Amours du Chevalier de Faublas, a novel styled as a memoir (roman-mémoires) by French playwright and writer Jean-Baptiste Louvet de Couvrai (June 12, 1760-Aug. 25, 1797) and Monsieur de Pourceaugnac, a three-act comédie-ballet by Molière, stage name of French actor and playwright Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (Jan. 15, 1622-Feb. 17, 1673).

The premiere took place Thursday, Jan. 26, 1911. The venue was Königliches Opernhaus (Royal Opera House), now known as Semperoper, the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Opera of the Saxon State of Dresde), located in the historic center of Dresden, Saxony, east central Germany.

Der Rosenkavalier premiered in the opera house’s second building. German architect Manfred Semper (May 3, 1838-Sept. 13, 1913), built the second opera house in the Neo-Renaissance style, according to his father's designs. The second building replaced the first building, designed by Manfred’s father, Gottfried Semper (Nov. 29, 1803-May 15, 1879), and destroyed by fire in 1869.

The building that premiered Der Rosenkavalier was gutted during the bombing of Dresden, an American and British aerial bombing occurring during the Second World War (Sept. 1, 1939-Sept. 2, 1945) between Feb. 13 and Feb. 15, 1945. Reconstruction of the current, third Semperoper was completed Feb. 13, 1985, exactly four decades after the devastating bombing.

Strauss and his librettist set Der Rosenkavalier in 18th-century Vienna, Austria. The plot unfolds during the early years of the reign of Empress Maria Theresa (May 13, 1717-Nov. 29, 1780), the only female Habsburg ruler and also the last ruler of the House of Habsburg.

Canadian opera director Robert Carsen seeks to retain the opera's fin-de-siècle atmosphere, with its awareness of change and of the passage of time. He fast forwards the 2016-2017 season's production of Der Rosenkavalier to 1910, the year in which Richard Strauss and Hugo Hofmannsthal created the opera.The decades from the 1880 to 1910 witnessed the transition from 19th century Victorianism to 20th century modernism.

The Saturday matinee broadcast of Cyrano de Bergerac begins at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (4:30 p.m. Coordinated Universal Time). The estimated run time for the performance is about 4 hours 12 minutes. The performance, sung in the original German, comprises three acts and two intermissions.

Act I is timed at 73 minutes. A 30-minute intermission follows Act I.

Act II is timed at 57 minutes. A 30-minute intermission follows Act II.

Act III is timed at 62 minutes. The Saturday matinee broadcast performance ends with Act III’s final notes.

Sebastian Weigle conducts all performances, including the Saturday matinee broadcast, of Der Rosenkavalier. His birthplace is Berlin, northeastern Germany. The German conductor debuted in the Metropolitan Opera’s 2000 production of Die Zauberflöte by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791). This season Sebastian Weigle also conducts Fidelio by Ludwig von Beethoven (bapt. Dec. 17, 1770-March 26, 1827).

Renée Fleming appears as Princess Marie Therese von Werdenberg, titled as the Marschallin, a Field Marshal’s wife. She was born in Indiana, west central Pennsylvania. The American soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 1991 as the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791).

Elīna Garanča appears in the trouser role of Octavian, Count Rofrano, the Marschallin’s young lover, whose role as the Knight of the Rose, the bearer of a traditional silver engagement rose, leads him to his true love, Sophie von Faninal. Her birthplace is Riga, Latvia. The Latvian operatic mezzo-soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2008 as Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia by Italian composer Gioachino Antonio Rossini (Feb. 29, 1792-Nov. 13, 1868).

Erin Morley appears as Sophie von Faninal, whose wealthy, bourgeois father seeks an advantageous marriage for her with the Marschallin’s country cousin, the financially-distressed, lecherous, older Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau. She was born in Salt Lake City, northeastern Utah. The American coloratura soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2008 as the First Madrigal in Manon Lescaut by Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924).

Erin Morley shares the role of Sophie this season with Kathleen Kim. Born in Seoul, South Korea, Kathleen Kim appears in the April 28 and May 1 performances of Der Rosenkavalier. The Korean-American operatic coloratura soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2007 as Barbarina in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro.

Günther Groissböck appears as Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau, whose lechery foils his pursuit of Sophie von Faninal. He was born in Waidhofen an der Ybbs, Lower Austria, northeastern Austria. The Austrian bass debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2010 as Colline in Puccini’s La Bohème. This season Günther Groissböck also appears as Don Fernando in Beethoven’s Fidelio.

Marcus Brück appears Herr von Faninal, Sophie’s wealthy parvenu father. His birthplace is Speyer, Rhineland-Palatinate, southwestern Germany. The role of Herr von Faninal marks the German baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut this season.

Matthew Polenzani appears as a singer whose aria is interrupted by Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau’s greedy wranglings of his marriage contract with the Marschallin’s notary. Matthew Polenzani was born in Evanston, Cook County, northeastern Illinois. The American lyric tenor debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 1997 as Boyar Kruschov in Boris Godunov by Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (March 21, 1839-March 28, 1881). This season Matthew Polenzani also appears as Don Ottavio in Mozart’s Don Giovanni and in the title role of Mozart’s Idomeneo.

Operabase, an online database, places Richard Strauss at number 10 in a ranking of 1,281 most popular composers for the five seasons from 2011/2012 to 2015/16. Der Rosenkavalier places at 38 in the list of 2,658 most popular operas.

The Metropolitan Opera’s 2016 Repertory Report gives performance statistics through Oct. 31. Der Rosenkavalier holds place 22, with 384 performances, for the period from first Met performance, Dec. 9, 1913, to last performance, Dec. 13, 2013. The Metropolitan Opera’s 2016-2017 season falls outside the report’s parameters.

The takeaway for Der Rosenkavalier as the May 13, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is the Marschallin’s awareness of the passage of time and her generous retirement from the opera’s love triangle, the finding of true love by Octavian and Sophie, and the avaricious, lechery buffoonery of clueless Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau.

The 2016-2017 Met Opera season's staging of Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss debuts as a new production by Canadian opera director Robert Carsen: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook April 12, 2017

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

The 2016-2017 Met Opera season's new production of Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss airs as the Met Opera's Saturday matinee broadcast May 13, 2017: Meet Me At The Opera @MMATOpera via Twitter, Nov. 25, 2016, @ https://twitter.com/MMATOpera/status/802274759933329411

The 2016-2017 Met Opera season's staging of Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss debuts as a new production by Canadian opera director Robert Carsen: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook April 12, 2017, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.10158641118665533.1073741934.20807115532/10158641120245533

For further information:

"Composers: Composers Ranked by the Number of Performances of Their Operas Over the Five Seasons 2011/2012 to 2015/16." Operabase  > Opera Statistics.
Available @ http://operabase.com/top.cgi?lang=en

Louvet de Couvray, Jean-Baptiste. Amours du Chevalier de Faublas. Tome premier. Paris, France: Boulland, 1825.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://hdl.handle.net/2027/nyp.33433045611880

Louvet de Couvray, Jean-Baptiste. Amours du Chevalier de Faublas. Tome second. Paris, France: Boulland, 1825.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://hdl.handle.net/2027/nyp.33433082120621

Louvet de Couvray, Jean-Baptiste. Amours du Chevalier de Faublas. Tome troisième. Paris, France: Boulland, 1825.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://hdl.handle.net/2027/nyp.33433082123260

Louvet de Couvray, Jean-Baptiste. Amours du Chevalier de Faublas. Tome quatrième. Paris, France: Boulland, 1825.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://hdl.handle.net/2027/nyp.33433082123278

Meet Me At The Opera @MMATOpera. "Six New Productions #MetOpera. Der Rosenkavalier, Renée Fleming and Elina Garanca. Metropolitan Opera 2016-17." Twitter. Nov. 25, 2016.
Available @ https://twitter.com/MMATOpera/status/802274759933329411

Metropolitan Opera. “Robert Carsen on His New Production of Der Rosenkavalier.” YouTube. May 5, 2016.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6s4QcLnE-w

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Rosenkavalier: Act II Duet." YouTube. April 14, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bbzTQ-lDuo

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Rosenkavalier: Act III Duet." YouTube. April 14, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waSk776rZEo

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Rosenkavalier: Act III Trio." YouTube. April 14, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWoXyXH4KPE

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Rosenkavalier at the Metropolitan Opera." YouTube. April 13, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_XMRABIArc

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Rosenkavalier Promo." YouTube. March 29, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-6y-rYtdjk

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Rosenkavalier: Renée Fleming Interviews Elīna Garanča and Günther Groissböck." YouTube. May 4, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PG4r907iqT4

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. "Der Rosenkavalier opens tomorrow, April 13! Renée Fleming sings the Marschallin opposite the Octavian of Elina Garanca. Erin Morley is Sophie, Günther Groissböck is Baron Ochs, and Sebastian Weigle conducts the sparkling score. . . .Photos by Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera." Facebook. April 12, 2017.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.10158641118665533.1073741934.20807115532/10158641120245533

“Performances Statistics Through October 31, 2016.” MetOpera Database > The Metropolitan Opera Archives > Repertory Report.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/Database%20Opera%20Statistics.xml