Iolanta and Bluebeard’s Castle Are the Feb. 9, 2019, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast

Summary: Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta and Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle are the Feb. 9, 2019, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast, numbering 11th of 24 in the 2018-2019 season’s schedule.

Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle debuted Jan. 29, 2015, with German soprano Nadja Michael as Judith and Russian bass Mikhail Petrenko in the diabolical title role; Marek Adamski, costume designer; Boris Kudlička, set designer; Marc Heinz, lighting director: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook Jan. 29, 2015

Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta and Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle are the Feb. 9, 2019, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast, airing as the 11th of 24 scheduled Saturday matinee radio broadcasts during the 2018-2019 Met Opera season.

Russian late-Romantic composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (May 7, 1840-Nov. 6, 1893) set his musical score for Iolanta to a Russian libretto by his brother, Russian dramatist and opera librettist Modest Tchaikovsky (May 13, 1850-Jan. 15, 1916). The libretto’s literary source is Kong Renés Datter (King René’s Daughter), a one-act Danish verse play written in 1845 by Danish playwright and poet Henrik Hertz (Aug. 25, 1797-Feb. 25, 1870). Hertz’s play fictionalizes Yolande (Nov. 2, 1428-March 23, 1483), Duchess of Lorraine and daughter of René d’Anjou (Jan. 16, 1409-July 10, 1480), King of Naples and titular King of Jerusalem, as a blind, 16-year-old sheltered in a garden paradise and known as Iolanthe.

Kong Renés Datter premiered Aprl 5, 1845, at Det Kongelige Teater (Royal Danish Theatre), located at Kongens Nytorv (The King’s New Square) in central Copenhagen’s Indre By (Inner City), eastern Denmark. The premiere took place in the Royal Danish Theatre’s first building, which was designed by Danish architect Nicolai (also known as Niels) Eigtved (June 4 or 22, 1701-June 7, 1754) and opened Dec. 18, 1748.

The world premiere of the Tchaikovsky brothers’ romantic opera happened Dec. 18, 1892, at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, northwestern Russia. Saint Petersburg’s historic ballet and opera theatre is sited at 1 Theatre Square, on the east embankment of the Kryukov Canal, which connects The Fontanka and Moyka rivers in central Saint Petersburg.

Iolanta’s Metropolitan Opera premiere took place Jan. 29, 2015. Tchaikovsky’s final opera shared opening night with a new production of Bluebeard’s Castle by Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist and pianist Béla Bartók (March 25, 1881-Sept. 26, 1945).

Béla Bartók set the musical score for Bluebeard’s Castle (A kékszakállú herceg vára; The Blue-Bearded Duke's Castle) to a Hungarian libretto by Hungarian-Jewish film critic, poet and writer Béla Balázs (Aug. 4, 1884-May 17, 1949). The libretto’s literary source is Barbe Bleue (Bluebeard), a French literary fairy tale by French writer Charles Perrault (Jan. 12, 1628-May 16, 1703). Perrault’s Barbe Bleue, derived from a French folk tale, was first published in 1697 in Histoires ou Contes du Temps Passé, Avec des Moralitez.

Bartók’s only opera premiered May 24, 1918, at the Royal Hungarian Opera House (Magyar Állami Operaház) in Budapest, north central Hungary. The neo-Renaissance opera house, designed by Hungarian architect Miklós Ybl (April 6, 1814-Jan.22, 1891), opened Sept. 27, 1884. The opera house, sited at Andrássy Ave 22, lies within Budapest’s 1987-designated, 2002-expanded UNESCO World Heritage site.

Bluebeard’s Castle’s Metropolitan Opera premiere happened June 10, 1974. Bluebeard’s Castle shared opening night with a new production of Gianni Schicchi, the third and final part of Il Trittico, three one-act operas by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924).

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season offers six performances of Iolanta and Bluebeard’s Castle. The double feature opened Thursday, Jan. 24, at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The month’s second performance happened Monday, Jan. 28, at 7:30 p.m.

The season’s four remaining performances take place in February: Friday, Feb. 1, at 7:30 p.m.; Monday, Feb. 4, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 9, at 12:30 p.m.; and Thursday, Feb. 14, at 7:30 p.m. The Feb. 9 performance airs as the 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s 11th Saturday matinee radio broadcast.

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s double feature of Iolanta and Bluebeard’s Castle has an estimated run time of 3 hours 22 minutes. Iolanta is slated for 98 minutes. An intermission of 37 minutes precedes Bluebeard’s Castle, which has a run time of 67 minutes.

Henrik Nánási conducts all performances of the double feature. The Hungarian conductor makes his Metropolitan Opera debut with his conductorship of Iolanta and Bluebeard’s Castle.

Sonya Yoncheva appears in all performances in Tchaikovsky’s title role. The Bulgarian operatic soprano’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Nov. 21, 2013, as Gilda in the opera house’s 859th performance of Rigoletto by 19th century Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Sonya Yoncheva also performs as Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello.

Matthew Polenzani appears as Count Gottfried Vaudémont, who falls in love with blind Iolanta and marries sighted Iolanta. He was originally scheduled for the role in all six performances but, due to illness, yielded opening night to his replacement, Alexey Dolgov. The American lyric tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 19, 1997, as Khrushchov in the opera house’s 251st performance of Boris Godunov by Russian composer Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (March 21, 1839-March 28, 1881). During the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Matthew Polenzani also sings the title role in La Clemenza di Tito by Classical Era composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791).

Alexey Dolgov sings the role of Count Vaudémont for the season premiere, Thursday, Jan. 24, as replacement for Matthew Polenzani. The Siberian tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened June 12, 2011, as Edgardo in the opera house’s 589th performance of Lucia di Lammermoor by 19th century Italian bel canto opera composer Gaetano Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Alexey Dolgov also appears as Cassio in Verdi's Otello. (Update per The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Twitter Jan. 24, 2019).

Alexey Markov appears as Robert, Duke of Burgundy, blind Iolanta’s fiancé, in the double feature’s first five performances (Jan. 24, 28; Feb. 1, 4; Saturday matinee broadcast Feb. 9). The Russian operatic baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 10, 2007, as Prince Andrey Bolkonsky in the opera house’s 11th performance of War and Peace by Russian-Soviet composer, conductor and pianist Sergei Prokofiev (April 23, 1891-March 5, 1953).

Alexey Markov shares the role of Robert with Lucas Meachem, who appears in the closing night, Feb. 14, performance.The American baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 10, 2007, as General Rayevsky in the opera house’s 11th performance of Prokofiev’s War and Peace. During the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Lucas Meachem also performs as Marcello in Puccini’s La Bohème.

Elchin Azizov appears in all performances as Ibn-Hakia, the physician who restores Iolanta’s sight. The Azerbaijani operatic baritone reprises his Metropolitan Opera debut role, which occurred in Iolanta’s Metropolitan Opera premiere Jan. 29, 2015. In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Elchin Azizov also appears as Abimélech in Samson et Dalila by French Romantic Era composer Camille Saint-Saëns (Oct. 9, 1835-Dec. 16, 1921).

Vitalij Kowaljow appears as King René, Iolanta’s father, in the double feature’s first five performances (Jan. 24, 28; Feb. 1, 4; Saturday matinee broadcast Feb. 9). The Russian bass made his Metropolitan Opera debut March 17, 2003, as the High Priest in the opera house’s 24th performance of Verdi’s Nabucco. During the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Vitalij Kowaljow also performs as Ramfis in Verdi’s Aida.

Vitalij Kowaljow shares the role of King René with Alexander Roslavets, who performs in the closing night, Feb. 14, performance. The Belarusian bass-baritone’s closing night performance marks his Metropolitan Opera debut.

Angela Denoke appears in all performances of Bluebeard's Castle as Judith, the collector's fourth wife, who frees her three predecessors. The German soprano’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened March 11, 2005, as Princess von Werdenberg in the opera house’s 363rd performance of Der Rosenkavalier by German late Romantic and early modern composer Richard Strauss (June 11, 1864-Sept. 8, 1949).

Gerald Finley appears in all performances of Bluebeard’s Castle in the title role as wife-collecting Bluebeard. The Canadian operatic baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Jan. 24, 1998, as Papageno in the opera house’s 317th performance of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte.

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s performances of Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta and Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle revive Mariusz Trelinski’s staging. The Polish film, opera and theatre director’s staging debuted Jan. 29, 2015, as new productions for the opera house’s 25th performance of Bluebeard’s Castle and for the Metropolitan Opera premiere of Iolanta.

Mariusz Trelinski’s production team comprises Boris Kudlička, set designer; Marek Adamski, costume designer; Marc Heinz, lighting designer; Bartek Macias, video projection designer; Mark Grey, sound designer; and Thomasz Jan Wygoda, choreographer. Piotr Gruszczynski is the production’s dramaturg.

The takeaways for Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta and Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle as the Feb. 9, 2019, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast are that the double feature airs as the 11th of the 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s 24 scheduled Saturday matinee radio broadcasts and that the pairing balances Tchaikovsky’s last opera with Bartók’s only opera.

17th century imagined portraits of Yolande d'Anjou (real-life subject of Henrik Hertz's and Pyotr Tchaikovsky's works) and her husband and second cousin, Ferry II de Lorraine (ca. 1417-Aug. 31, 1470), comte de Vaudémont by an unknown French artist; Ferry II conte di Vaudemont e la sposa, 557910, Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

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

Image credits:

Polish director Mariusz Trelinski's new production of Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle debuted Jan. 29, 2015, with German soprano Nadja Michael as Judith and Russian bass Mikhail Petrenko in the diabolical title role; Marek Adamski, costume designer; Boris Kudlička, set designer; Marc Heinz, lighting director: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook Jan. 29, 2015, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532/10155218816420533/

17th century imagined portraits of Yolande d'Anjou (real-life subject of Henrik Hertz's and Pyotr Tchaikovsky's works) and her husband and second cousin, Ferry II de Lorraine (ca. 1417-Aug. 31, 1470), comte de Vaudémont by an unknown French artist; Ferry II conte di Vaudemont e la sposa, 557910, Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ferry_II_de_Vaudémont.jpg and @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ambito_francese_-_Iolanda_d'Angiò,_duchessa_di_Lorena_e_di_Bar,_contessa_di_Vaudémont.jpg

For further information:

“Debut: Alexey Dolgov.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 354020 Lucia di Lammermoor {589} Matinee ed. Tokyo, Japan: 06/12/2011.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=354020

“Debut: Angela Denoke.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 351190 Der Rosenkavalier {363} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/11/2005.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=351190

“Debut: Sonya Yoncheva.” MetOpera Database > “Debut: Sonya Yoncheva.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 355145 Rigoletto {859} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/21/2013.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=355145

“Debut: Vitalij Kowaljow.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 333501 Nabucco {24} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/17/2003.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=333501

“Debuts: Aleksei Markov, Lucas Meachem . . . .” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 352228 War and Peace {11} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/10/2007.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=352228

“Debuts: Constantin Pluzhnikov . . . Matthew Polenzani.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 330264 Boris Godunov {251} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/19/1997.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=330264

“Debuts: Gerald Finley, Edo de Waart.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 330372 Die Zauberflöte {317} Metropolitan Opera House: 01/24/1998.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=330372

“Debuts: Ilya Bannik . . . Eichin [sic] Azizov.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 355785 Metropolitan Opera Premiere (Iolanta) New Production (Bluebeard's Castle) Iolanta {1} Bluebeard's Castle {25} Metropolitan Opera House: 01/29/2015.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=355785

Hertz, Henrik. Kong René’s Datter. Lyrisk Drama. Kjobenhavn (Copenhagen, Denmark: C.A. Reitzel, 1847.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/kongrensdatter00hert

“The History of the Royal Danish Theatre.” Det KGL Teater > About Us > About the Theatre > The History of the Royal Danish Theatre.
Available @ https://kglteater.dk/en/about-us/about-the-theatre/history/

Jensen, Niels. “Kong Renés Datter Lyrisk Drama I 1 Akt af Henrik Hertz.” Dansk Forfatterleksikon > Titler på opført dramatik 1722-1975 > Et Bestemt Teater > Kongelige Teater, Det > Det Kongelige Teaters Repertoire 1748-1975 > Denne Saeson: Saeson nr 97 (1844-45).
Available @ http://danskforfatterleksikon.dk/1850t/tnr1342.htm

Marriner, Derdriu. “Carmen Is the Feb. 2, 2019, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast.” Earth and Space News. Monday, Jan. 28, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/carmen-is-feb-2-2019-met-opera-saturday.html

Metropolitan Opera ‏@MetOpera. "ALERT: For this evening’s season premiere of Iolanta / Bluebeard’s Castle, the role of Count Gottfried Vaudémont will be sung by Alexey Dolgov, replacing Matthew Polenzani, who is ill." Twitter. Jan. 24, 2019.
Available @ https://twitter.com/MetOpera/status/1088546846291697664

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. “Tune-in tonight to the Met premiere of Iolanta/Bluebeard's Castle! Anna Netrebko, Piotr Beczala, Nadja Michael, and Mikhail Petrenko star in Mariusz Treliński's new production! Listen Live at 7:25 pm ET: http://bit.ly/1umANN5." Facebook. Jan. 29, 2015.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532/10155218816420533/

“Metropolitan Opera Premiere: Bluebeard’s Castle.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 237740 Metropolitan Opera Premiere (Bluebeard's Castle) New Production (Gianni Schicchi) Bluebeard's Castle {1} Gianni Schicchi {64} Metropolitan Opera House: 06/10/1974.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=237740

“Metropolitan Opera Premiere: Iolanta.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 355785 Metropolitan Opera Premiere (Iolanta) New Production (Bluebeard's Castle) Iolanta {1} Bluebeard's Castle {25} Metropolitan Opera House: 01/29/2015.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=355785

Perrault, Charles. Contes du Temps Passé. Avec des Moralitez. Paris, France: Claude Barbin, M.DC.XCVII (1697).
Available via Gallica -- The BnF (Bibliothèque nationale de France) Digital Library @ https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k10545223