Salome from San Francisco

 👍🏻

Conductor - Nicola Luisotti 

Director and Choreographer - Séan Curran 

 

Garrett Sorenson - Narraboth

Elizabeth DeShong - A page

Greer Grimsley - Jokanaan

Nadja Michael - Salome

Kim Begley - Herod

Irina Mishura - Herodias

I loved seeing this again.  I mean, of course, Salome from the San Francisco Opera.  I saw it live here, 11/2/2009.  Each of the main characters represented their role to a T.  This opera is based on a play by Oscar Wilde and follows the original closely in German.

The biggest problem with Salome is that Salome is 15 and the voice required to sing her is about 40, I would say.  Nadja overcomes all this.  She convinces as a young woman insanely in love.  I don't know what would improve on this.  In the house I could not see the dance well enough to tell what was going on.  It turned out to be very sexy and merely suggestive of nudity.

I also found Greer Grimsley beautiful and believable.  This Johanahan might lure young women to follow him with his charisma. 

As an overall theatrical experience, this may just possibly be the best.  I'd have to watch Maria Ewing again to be sure.