La Fanciulla del West Is the Dec. 22, 2018, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast

Summary: Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West is the Dec. 22, 2018, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast, numbering fourth of 24 in the 2018-2019 season’s schedule.

Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West airs Dec. 22, as the 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s fourth Saturday matinee radio broadcast: Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook Feb. 19, 2018

Giacomo Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West is the Dec. 22, 2018, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast, airing as the fourth of 24 scheduled Saturday matinee radio broadcasts during the 2018-2019 Met Opera season.

Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924) set his musical score for La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West) to an Italian libretto by Italian journalist, poet and writer Guelfo Civinini (Aug. 1, 1873-April 10, 1954) and Italian librettist Carlo Zangarini (Dec. 9, 1874-July 19, 1943). The librettists’ literary source was The Girl of the Golden West, by American playwright and theatrical producer David Belasco (July 25, 1853-May 14, 1931).

Belasco’s play opened Nov. 14, 1905, at the old Belasco Theatre, an off-Broadway theater located at 209 West 42nd Street in New York City’s Midtown Manhattan. Belasco’s 42nd Street playhouse was known as the Belasco Theatre until its sale in 1910. The old Belasco Theatre is now known as the New Victory Theater. Belasco relinquished the playhouse in favor of bestowing his name upon the Stuyvesant Theatre, which he opened in 1907 at 111 West 44th Street in Midtown Manhattan.

The Metropolitan Opera hosted the world premiere of La Fanciulla del West. The California Gold Rush-themed opera’s premiere took place Dec. 10, 1910, with the composer in attendance. The Metropolitan Opera Archives Database identifies David Belasco and Met Opera’s technical director, Edward Siedle (May 30, 1858-March 30, 1925), as the premiere’s directors.

The opera company’s archives also indicate: “David Belasco, author of the play, The Girl of the Golden West, on which the opera was based, worked on every detail of this production, overseeing the design and stage direction.”

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season premiere of La Fanciulla del West takes place Thursday, Oct. 4, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Including the season premiere, seven performances are slated for the 2018-2019 Met Opera season.

All seven performances take place in October. The month’s additional performances are scheduled for Monday, Oct. 8, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, Oct. 12, at 7:30 p.m.; Wednesday, Oct. 17, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 20, at 8 p.m.; Tuesday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Oct. 27, at 1 p.m.

La Fanciulla has an estimated run time of 3 hours 22 minutes. Act I spans 59 minutes, followed by an intermission of 36 minutes. Act II runs for 46 minutes, followed by an intermission of 35 minutes. Act III runs for 26 minutes.

Marco Armiliato conducts all performances. The Italian conductor’s first appearance at the Metropolitan Opera took place June 16, 1998, in the opera company’s 557th performance of Il Trovatore by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901). His Met Opera debut happened Nov. 9, 1998, in the opera company’s 1,048th performance of Puccini’s La Bohème.

Eva-Maria Westbroek appears for all performances in the title role of Minnie, Polka Saloon owner who falls in love with outlaw Dick Johnson. The Dutch soprano’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened April 22, 2011, as Sieglinde in the opera company’s 525th performance of Die Walküre by German composer Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813-Feb. 13, 1883).

Yusif Eyvazov appears in October’s first three performances as Dick Johnson, Minnie’s outlaw love interest. His performances are slated for opening night, Thursday, Oct. 4; Monday, Oct. 8; and Friday, Oct. 12. The Azerbaijan dramatic tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Nov. 7, 2015, as Calaf in the opera company’s 305th performance of Puccini’s Turandot.

Jonas Kaufmann appears in October’s last four performances as Dick Johnson. The German operatic tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Feb. 4, 2006, as Alfredo in the opera company’s 904th performance of Verdi’s La Traviata.

Carlo Bosi appears as Nick, the Polka Saloon’s bartender, in all performances. The Italian tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 6, 2013, as Dr. Cajus in the opera company’s 176th performance of Verdi’s Falstaff. In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Carlo Bosi also appears as The Abbé in Adriana Lecouvreur by Italian composer Francesco Cilea (July 23, 1866-Nov. 20, 1950).

Željko Lučić appears in all performances as Jack Rance, the mining camp’s sheriff who loves Minnie. The Serbian operatic baritone made his Metropolitan Opera debut Sept. 26, 2006, as Barnaba in the opera company’s 275th performance of La Gioconda by 19th century Italian opera composer Amilcare Ponchielli (Aug. 31, 1834-Jan. 16, 1886). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Željko Lučić also appears as Iago in Verdi’s Othello.

Michael Todd Simpson appears in all performances as Sonora the miner. The American operatic baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 3, 2009, as Hermann/Schlémil in the opera company’s 241st performance of Les Contes d’Hoffmann by German-born French composer Jacques Offenbach (June 20, 1819-Oct. 5, 1880). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Michael Todd Simpson also appears as Esamillo in Carmen by French Romantic Era composer Georges Bizet (Oct. 25, 1838-June 3, 1875) and as Donner in Das Rheingold by German composer and librettist Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813-Feb. 13, 1883).

Matthew Rose appears in all performances as Ashby, a Wells Fargo agent who pursues outlaws. The English operatic bass’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Nov. 18, 2011, as Colline in the opera company’s 1,240th performance of Puccini’s La Bohème. In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Matthew Rose also reprises his debut role as La Bohème’s Colline.

Oren Gradus appears in all performances as travelling minstrel Jake Wallace. The American bass’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 14, 2002, as the Guardian of Ores in Elektra by German late Romantic and early modern composer Richard Strauss (June 11, 1864-Sept. 8, 1949). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Oren Gradus also appears as Angelotti in Puccini’s Tosca.

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s performances mark the opera house’s third revival of Giancarlo del Monaco’s 1991-1992 production, which had debuted Oct. 10, 1991, in the opera company's 76th performance of Puccini's California Gold Rush-themed opera. The Metropolitan Opera’s last staging of La Fanciulla del West occurred during the 2010-2011 season as the second revival of Giancarlo del Monaco’s production. The season’s performance Dec. 10, 2010, celebrated the 100th anniversary of the opera’s world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera. The production's first revival had taken place in the 1992-1993 season.

The takeaway for La Fanciulla del West as the fourth 2018-2019 Saturday matinee broadcast, airing Dec. 22, is that the season’s performances mark the opera house’s third revival of Italian stage director Giancarlo del Monaco’s 1991-1992 production.

The Metropolitan Opera was the venue Dec. 10, 1910, for the world premiere of Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West; photo by White Studio, New York City: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook March 19, 2012

Acknowledgment

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

Image credits:

Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West airs Dec. 22, as the 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s fourth Saturday matinee radio broadcast: Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook Feb. 19, 2018, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532.229232.20807115532/10160146382080533/

The Metropolitan Opera was the venue Dec. 10, 1910, for the world premiere of Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West; photo by White Studio, New York City: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook March 19, 2012, @ https://www.facebook.com/20807115532/posts/10151394071975533/

For further information:

“Debut: Jonas Kaufmann.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 351420 La Traviata {904} Metropolitan Opera House: 02/04/2006.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=351420

“Debut: Matthew Rose.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 354168 La Bohème {1240} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/18/2011.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=354168

“Debut: Michael Todd Simpson.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 353209 Les Contes d’Hoffmann {241} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/03/2009.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=353209

“Debut: Oren Gradus.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 350433 Elektra {93} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/14/2002.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=353209

"Debut: Yusif Eyvazov." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 356109 Turandot {305} Matinee ed. Metropolitan Opera House: 11/07/2015.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=356109

“Debuts: Christopher Wheeldon, Holly Hynes, Zeljko Lucic . . .” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 351556 La Gioconda {275} Metropolitan Opera House: 09/26/2006.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=351556

“Debuts: Eva-Maria Westbroek, Molly Fillmore, Lindsay Ammann.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 353959 New Production Die Walküre {525} Metropolitan Opera House: 04/22/2011.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=353959

“Debuts: Gregory Lorenz, Marco Armiliato.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 331123 La Bohème {1048} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/09/1998.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=331123

“Debuts: Peter Van Praet, Paolo Fanale, Carlo Bosi, Christian Van Horn.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 355173 New Production Falstaff {176} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/06/2013.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=355173

“First Appearance Marco Armiliato.” MetOpera Database > Met Performance] CID: 330663 Il Trovatore {557} Parks ed. Central Park, Great Lawn, Manhattan: 06/16/1998.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=330663

Marriner, Derdriu. “2018-2019 Met Opera Season Premiere of La Fanciulla del West Is Thursday, Oct. 4.” Earth and Space News. Monday, Sept. 24, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/09/2018-2019-met-opera-season-premiere-of.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “2018-2019 Met Opera Season Stages 29 Operas.” Earth and Space News. Monday, June 18, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/06/2018-2019-metropolitan-opera-season.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “La Traviata Is March 11, 2017, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast.” Earth and Space News. Monday, March 6, 2017.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2017/03/la-traviata-is-march-11-2017.html

Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. “Live in HD October 27. Soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek sings Puccini’s gun-slinging heroine in this romantic epic of the Wild West, with the heralded return of tenor Jonas Kaufmann in the role of the outlaw she loves. . . .” Facebook. Feb. 19, 2018.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532.229232.20807115532/10160146382080533/

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. “World Premiere of Puccini's ‘La Fanciulla del West’ December 10, 1910 Puccini returns for the world premiere of his ‘La Fanciulla del West’, based on the play he had seen on his earlier visit. This production stars Enrico Caruso, Emmy Destinn and Pasquale Amato.” Facebook. March 19, 2012.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/20807115532/posts/10151394071975533/

“New Production: La Fanciulla del West.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 306170 New Production La Fanciulla del West {76} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/10/1991.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=306170

“World Premiere: La Fanciulla del West.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 49290 World Premiere In the presence of the composer La Fanciulla del West {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/10/1910.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=49290