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Press "Thank
Heaven for Teatro Grattacielo."
—Peter G. Davis, New York Magazine, December 10, 2001 "After years of disfavor, these operas are hip again." La Nave, October 31, 2012. "It would be impossible to catalog all the beauties of this absorbing score, one suffused with caloric orchestral warmth as well as the poised, aristocratic nobility so characteristic of Montemezzi's musical nature. From that first gently murmuring seascape to the spectacular ceremonial conclusion, the piece is virtually without a dead spot or a carelessly written passage – compliments that few opera composers of any era can readily earn. Teatro Grattacielo once again delivered a performance of quality -- quite an accomplishment considering the challenges of the work, not to mention the difficult logistics of the occasion. " "Teatro Grattacielo always digs up amazing singers to perform their amazing scores. Tiffany Abban, making her New York debut, has a full-sized, well-developed, beautifully supported spinto of womanly color and Verdian weight. She can ride over an orchestra or sing sweetly and softly, and the sound never becomes harsh when weight is brought to bear. She seemed a little tired at the end of Act II (hardly a surprise!) but she rallied for the spectacular conclusion... She has a sturdy figure but she is tall and can carry it, and she sings as if she meant what the words convey. Robert Brubaker, a better-known quantity, did some startling and thrilling things with the role of Marco Gràtico, especially in the high-lying area where most of the part seems to sit. " --John Yohalem, Parterre.com. Read the full review > I Gioielli Della Madonna, May 26, 2o1o. "On Monday night...an enthusiastic audience turned out to hear a ratity: Wolf-Ferrari's melodramatic and colorful "I Gioielli Della Madonna." ...It was terrific fun, and interesting to hear the full-throttled performance that Teatro Grattacielo presented here, with David Wroe conducting a large and committed cast... I Compagnacci and Il Re; David Wroe and the Westfield Symphony Orchestra, having made a shimmering hour of I Compagnacci, really sank their teeth into the sly excesses of Il Re, the work of a master determined at the end of his lifez to show off everything he had learned." John Yohalem, Opera Today "On the podium, David Wroe brought passion and romantic movement to the production. A stylistic totality certainly fitting the dramatic intensity of the story: Love in all its cruel, sweet and most bitter metamorphoses. A truly effective presentation offered by Teatro Grattacielo." Il Piccolo Marat, April 14, 2009. "The Italian composer Pietro Mascagni hardly qualifies as a one-hit wonder, but you would never guess it to see just one work, “Cavalleria Rusticana,” turn up season after season... The rest have fallen into neglect, save for the efforts of specialist companies. One such outfit, Teatro Grattacielo, celebrated its 15th anniversary at Avery Fisher Hall on Monday night with a concert performance of “Il Piccolo Marat,” Mascagni’s 14th opera, heard in its United States première. Completed in 1921 and successfully staged in Rome that year, this three-act work is a classic rescue plot set in revolutionary France." Read more reviews of "Il Piccolo Marat" "Teatro Grattacielo, devotedly caretaking a neglected corner of the Italian operatic repertory, once again put us in its debt." David Wroe conducted the Teatro Grattacielo Orchestra and Cantori New York Chorus in a vivid reading of the sweeping Montemezzi score, which has orchestration reminiscent of Wagner and Italianate vocal lines... La Farsa Amorosa is
filled with crafty touches, like crystalline cuckoo clocks, distant
donkey brays
and bogus-pomp fanfares for Don Ferrante’s entrances. The score
unfurls in a ceaseless skein of supple melody and rich orchestration... David
Wroe's conducting proved delightful, not only to hear but to watch;
his alert involvement, clean, sharp movements and obvious emotional
connection to the score enhanced the feeling that La Farsa Amorosa had
lain undeservedly forgotten far too long.
Zazà,
Alice Tully Hall. "It is clear even in concert that I cavalieri di Ekebù is stageworthy, and Zandonai's densly orchestrated, atmospheric score and forceful vocal writing offer countless opportunities for the opera's large forces. Teatro Grattacielo assembled a first-rate group of solists..." —Donald Westwood, Opera News, 2001
"...New Yorkers should be tipping their opera hats to Teatro Grattacielo for its noble part in keeping tradition alive." —Patrick Dillon, The American Record Guide, March/April 2002
"...the company had assembled an admirable cast. In the vocally challenging title role, Manon Feubel, a strong dramatic soprano from Quebec, burst upon the scene in her U.S. debut to the acclaim of a large, enthusiastic audience...expressed by Feubel's voice of dark resonance and seemingly effortless power, with particularly stunning high notes." —Ruth Berges, OperaCanada, Spring 2003
"...Teatro
Grattacielo found a cast worthy of the occasion. Manon Feubel's
vibrant soprano and expressive generosity made her a most appealing Wally,
Frank Porretta sang Hagenbach with welcome security, and Brian Davis's
strong baritone turned Gellner into a particularly dangerous rival."
"...that
ever-laudable raider of the operatic attic, Teatro Grattacielo." "To
the rescue has come Teatro Grattacielo ... Singing the challenging
title role
was Manon Feubel ... her big, dusky voice has cutting power
in its
top range ... A standout was Monica Yunus, a bright-voiced coloratura,
in the role of Walter. Under Mr. Ajmone Marsan, the orchestra gave an
exuberant
and colorful, if not always tidy, account of this teeming and admirable
score."
"Grattacielo's
annual excursion into veristic operatic byways is an ever-welcome adornment
of the autumn music calendar ... And this season's
group of solo singers ranked with the strongest Grattacielo has ever
had."
"These
troupers, like Silipigni, sensed from the solar plexus what Mascagni
was up to. Over
rough spots as well as high spots, they took the measure
of his risky score."
"The
real astonishment was the magnificent performance by the orchestra,
led by Alfredo Silipigni...This
orchestra sounded like an opera orchestra
that had played together for years...Bravo to Teatro Grattacielo for
reviving this very deserving opera."
"As usual, Teatro Grattacielo's presentation was first-rate. The main hero of the evening was Alfredo Silipigni, still an underrated conductor who is one of the true masters of this repertory." —Bill Zakariasen, The Westsider, December 25-31, 2003 "Shared
Voyage of Discovery During an Opera in Concert...Mascagni's Iris which
was presented in concert on Monday night at Alice Tully Hall by Teatro
Grattacielo has enough interesting dramatic points
to make
one dream about how it might look in the theater." ..."an exultant
orchestral performance with thrilling choral work."
"100
Birthday Candles for Iris"..."a triumph for
the two prima donnas of the evening: the conductor Fiora Contino and
the soprano
Karen
Notare."..."a
shower of applause and flowers literally flooded the principals on
this splendid event." "Alice Tully Hall was jammed full with a knowledgeable
and enthusiastic audience." "Iris reached moments of great expressive
intensity." "A whole other story could be dedicated to the
costumes by Charles and Patricia Lester inspired by a refined Orient."
"This
loving performance made a strong case for the work...l'Arlesiana is
a lovely work and there are many other equally worthy operas from the
same period waiting to be reassessed, enough to keep Teatro Grattacielo
busy for years." "To judge by the crowd
at this art form called 'opera in concert,' one
must give credit to...Teatro Grattacielo for their fortuitous intuition
in producing these concerts." "Standing ovations, long, enthusiastic,
and joined in by all.'
"Teatro Grattacielo...presented
the North American première of a 1925
work by Riccardo Zandonai that has, at the least, shot to the top of
my list of favorite opera titles: I Cavalieri di Ekebù. "The
large and enthusiastic audience seemed genuinely surprised. Who would
have
thought that an unknown verismo opera...could be so interesting?"
"The
audience was clearly delighted to discover an important score from
a neglected age, and for
that Teatro Grattacielo deserves the credit
as well as encouragement to forge ahead."
"Last Monday Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center was packed full
of audience members with a fine ear who appreciated this unknown masterpiece
by the
Italian composer with perception and rapture." "...an event
to remember and perhaps a suggestion for future courageous productions
in
some opera
house."
"...its sprawling, Nordic-picaresque source brought forth masterly
and meticulously crafted orchestration, with page upon page of cannily
evocative
tone painting that moves seamlessly from grotesquerie to gossamer grace.
Eerie and stirring, it compels attention and admiration from start to
finish, and its rip-roaring, clangorous anvil-chorus finale can rouse
an audience to cheering fervor—as indeed it did at Tully Hall." "La sorpresa è non
poca ad ascoltare opere come 'Risurrezione' di Franco
Alfano: si resta colpiti non solo dalla forza espressiva, dalla carica
melodica e da quel saper sottolineare quasi alla perfezione stati d'animo
e situazioni, ma soprattutto dalla capacità di creare atmosfere
anche quando ci si affida ad un'edizione concertante come questa. Ci
riferiamo
a quanto messo in evidenza l'altra sera al Lincoln Center, all'Alice
Tully Hall, da un impeccabile complesso vocale e strumentale qual è quello
del Teatro Grattacielo di New York, diretto da Fiora Contino." "There
is, though, more finesse in the scoring than the Turandot finale
would lead one to suppose, with some nice viola solos and passages for
divided cellos...Such moments were well served in this performance...There
was some fine singing, too...Michael Corvino used grave tone and urgent
yet supple phrasing to give a convincing charge to Simonson...Michele
Fiammardente brought an eager and stylish Italianate tenor sound to
the...role of Dimitri.
Virginia Dupuy was a firm and glowing mezzo...Allison Charney looked
wonderful and produced the right sort of fresh, vulnerable sound..." "Grattacielo's
performance conducted with know-how by Fiora Contino, was almost without
exception very fine. The show-stealing baritone involved
was Michael Corvino whose sonorous voice strikingly recalls the late
Ettore Bastianini ... tenor Michele Fiammardente sang with assurance
and passion ... soprano Allison Charney was a virtual clone of a young
Licia Albanese ... Without exception, the large supporting cast was beyond
criticism, as was the Cantori New York Chorus..." "Italo
Montemezzi's opera L'Amore
dei Tre Re...was performed in concert
on March 26 and Tully Hall was quite full for the occasion, a welcome
evening all around." "Teatro Grattacielo cast their L'Amore with
love and care. "It was good to hear L'Amore again, and performed
so very well. Thank you." "Teatro
Grattacielo, New York City's newest opera-in-concert company, made
an auspicious
debut at Alice Tully Hall on March 26 with an impassioned
performance of Italo Montemezzi's sadly neglected L'Amore dei Tre
Re (1913)." "A
new and important New York opera company made its debut in Alice Tully
Hall
the last week in March -- the Teatro Grattacielo, which gave
us a rare hearing of the once-popular musical stage-work by Italo Montemezzi, L'Amore
dei Tre Re."
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