From Florence to Judea, the classic arts scene in New York is never quiet. Here is just a sampling of some of the classic arts events happening this week.
A new production of Salome opens at the Metropolitan Opera April 29. Director Claus Guth makes his Met debut directing Richard Strauss’ operatic adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s play. Following her acclaimed performance in Strauss’ Die Frau ohne Schatten earlier this season, soprano Elza van den Heever returns to star as Salome, the Princess of Judea, who courts disaster when she becomes smitten with the prophet Jochanaan, who is being held prisoner by her father King Herod. Baritone Peter Mattei plays Jochanaan, with tenor Gerhard Siegal as Herod, mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung as the Queen Herodias, and tenor Piotr Buszewski as the guard Narraboth. Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts.
Michelle DeYoung will also join the Met Orchestra Chamber Ensemble at Carnegie Hall April 28, with tenor Ben Bliss. They will perform Schoenberg’s chamber arrangement of Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, as well as works by Chabrier and Adés. Carnegie Hall will also host performances this week from soprano Gabriella Reyes with pianist Andés Sarre (April 29); jazz vocalist Samara Joy (April 30); the Attacca Quartet (May 1); pianist Emmanuel Ax (May 1); and soprano Nina Stemme with pianist Roland Pöntinen performing a program of Richard Wagner and Kurt Weill (May 2).
Returning to the Met, Michael Mayer’s production of Aida, which premiered earlier this season, returns for this season’s final set of performances, with soprano Angel Blue returning to the title role. Mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča joins as Amneris, returning to the Met stage after a five-year absence. Tenor Brian Jagde as Radamés, baritone Amartuvshin Enkhbat as Amonasro, bass Morris Robinson as Ramfis, and bass Krzysztof Bączyk as the King round out the principal cast.
Performances also continue at the Metropolitan Opera this week of Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) and Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro). Though written independently of one another, the operas are based on two plays from a trilogy by Pierre Beaumarchais. Barbiere tells the story of how the Count and Countess Almaviva met and eloped, with the wily barber Figaro assisting in helping the Countess-to-be Rosina escape the eye of her guardian Doctor Bartolo. Nozze, set years later, concerns Figaro’s approaching marriage to the Countess’ maid Susanna, and the Count and Countess’ increasingly strained marriage. Both beloved staples of the comic opera repertoire, Barbiere and Nozze are often considered a set, and on May 3, audiences will have the opportunity to take them both in as a double feature, with a matinee of Barbiere and an evening performance of Nozze.
The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center presents Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence at Alice Tully Hall May 4. The string sextet concert will begin with Bach’s “Ricercar a 6” from The Musical Offering, and continue with two string trios by Haydn and Schubert. The program will conclude with the Sextet for Strings from Richard Strauss’ opera Capriccio, and Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence. The performers will include violinists Paul Huang and Danbi Um, violists Matthew Lipman and Timothy Ridout, and cellists David Finckel and Sihao He.
The New York City Ballet presents two Innovators and Icons programs this week, showcasing between them the work of five choreographers closely connected with the company. The first program includes George Balanchine’s Scotch Symphony, set to Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 3; Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces, set to selections of music by Philip Glass; And Belles-Lettres, by NYCB Resident Choreographer Justin Peck, set to music by César Franck. The second program includes Paquita, the latest work by NYCB Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky, which had its world premiere earlier this year; A Suite of Dances, set by Jerome Robbins to selections from J.S. Bach’s solo cello suites; Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain Pas de Deux, set to music by Arvo Pärt; and Jerome Robbins’ Brandenburg, set to selections from Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos.
Conductor Simone Young joins the New York Philharmonic May 1-3 for a program including Schoenberg’s Notturno for Strings and Harp, Schumann’s Cello Concerto with soloist Steven Isserlis, and Brucker’s Symphony No. 6.
To stay up to date with classic arts news, subscribe to Playbill's classic arts newsletter.
