Out West Arts: Performance at the end of the world

Opera, music, theater, and art in Los Angeles and beyond

10 Questions for...
Elijah Moshinsky

February 01, 2012

 

Directing opera is a special talent. Success in other fields, including theater, is no guarantee of success in this one, and you can look at a long list of “celebrity” directors recently recruited for new productions at big opera houses for a litany of those who have failed to deliver on hype. Which is why it’s always exciting to see the name Elijah Moshinsky associated with an opera production. There are few directors working in opera with as long and as well regarded a career as Moshinksy, who’ll return to Los Angeles Opera this month to direct his production of Simon Boccanegra for the company starring tenor Placido Domingo in the title role under the musical direction of James Conlon. Moshinsky’s productions are familiar sights on most of the world’s biggest opera stages including The Metropolitan Opera and The Royal Opera House in London. And after over two decades in the business, his colorful, straightforward, and direct stagings are typically favorites wherever they are seen. A substantial number of these have been filmed for video including his Nabucco and Ariadne auf Naxos for the Met to name just two. Luckily, he took some time out of his busy schedule to sit down for the OWA 10 Questions.
  1. What opera would you most like to direct, but haven’t yet?

    Fidelio or Moses und Aron

  2. What opera would you never want to direct even if you had the opportunity to?

    Wagner's Ring Cycle

  3. What’s the best thing about working with singing-actors as opposed to the non-operatic variety?

    The best is the discipline and emotional creativity of singers,the worst is dealing with those singers who have a natural voice and make no effort to engage dramatically.

Domingo as Simon Boccanegra Photo: Catherine Ashmore/ROH

  1. You’ll return to Los Angeles Opera for a revival of your production of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra. What’s so special about this particular opera for you?

    It is a profound opera which mixes the personal and the political. At the end of the piece we feel we have experienced the whole span of a life. We are aware of a terrible destiny and tragedy.

  2. You’ve worked with most of the world’s greatest opera stars for decades and will again work with Placido Domingo in the title role of Simon Boccanegra. Who in the opera world, either onstage or off, would you like to work with that you haven’t yet?

    Maria Callas

  3. Which music made you want to direct opera?

    Kathleen Ferrier singing "What is Life" by Gluck

  4. What’s been your greatest achievement to date in the world of opera?

    I survived Muti


  5. Your iPod is destroyed by a vengeful mezzo. Which lost tracks would you miss most?

    Kempe conducting Meistersinger

  6. What's your current obsession?

    Simon Boccanegra

  7. With which opera character do you have the most in common?

    Hans Sachs

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[Permalink] Posted by Brian | 2/01/2012 12:25:00 AM

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Calendar

2/25/12
Britten Albert Herring
 Conlon, cond
Shrader/Kelly
Los Angeles Opera
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Los Angeles, CA

2/26/12
What the Butler Saw
 Joe Orton
Odyssey Theatre
Los Angeles, CA

2/27/12
asamisimasa
 recital
Monday Evening Concerts
Zipper Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

2/28/12
Andriessen La Girò
Andriessen Anaïs Nin
Andriessen Life
 Los Angeles Philharmonic
New Music Group
de Leeuw, cond.
w/ Zavalloni
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/1/12
Mussorgsky Khovanshchina
 Petrenko, cond
Borodina/Didyk
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

3/2/12
Show Boat
 Hammerstein/Kern
Lyric Opera
Chicago, IL

3/3/12
Mahler Das Lied von der Erde
Schoenberg Piano Concerto
Nott, cond
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Symphony Center
Chicago, IL

3/3/12
Hit the Wall
 Ike Holter
The Inconvenience
Garage Theatre
Chicago, IL

3/4/12
Beethoven Egmont Overture
Matheson Violin Concerto
Strauss Ein Heldenleben
 Heras-Casado, cond.
w/ Chalifour
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/6/12
Timboctou
 Alejandro Ricano
Martin Acosta, dir.
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

3/7/12
Jeffrey Kahane and LACO: a 15th Anniversary Celebration
 Kahane, cond.
w/ Batjer, Shulman
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/9/12
Copland Orchestral Variations
Harrison Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra
Ives A Concord Symphony
 Tilson Thomas, cond.
w/ Jacobs
San Francisco Symphony
Davies Symphony Hall
San Francisco, CA

3/10/12
Foss Phorion
Cowell Piano Concerto
Cage selections from Song books
Ruggles Sun-treader
Tilson Thomas, cond.
w/ La Barbara, Monk, Norman, Denk
San Francisco Symphony
Davies Symphony Hall
San Francisco, CA

3/10/12
Donizetti Don Pasquale
 Guidarini, cond.
Del Carlo/De Niese
San Diego Opera
San Diego, CA

3/11/12
Poulenc The Breasts of Tiresias
Martinu Tears of a Knife
 Mitisek, cond.
Center Theater
Long Beach, CA

3/17/12
Culture Clash American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose
 Kirk Douglas Theater
Culver City, CA

3/17/12
Dvorak Carnival Overture
Tchaikovsky Lansky's Aria from Eugene Onegin
Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
 Piatigorsky International Cello Festival
Jarvi, cond.
w/ Maisky
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/18/12
Dvorak Carnival Overture
Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations
Respighi Adagio con Variazoni
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
 Piatigorsky International Cello Festival
Jarvi, cond.
w/ Weilerstein
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/23/12
Frances-Marie Uitti
 REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

3/23/12
wild Up Craft
 Beyond Baroque
Venice, CA

3/24/12
Strauss Rosenkavalier Suite
Aho Clarinet Concerto
Sibelius Symphony No. 6
 Vanska, cond.
w/ Frost
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/26/12
Jazz Encounters
Works by Wolpe, Ablinger, and Johnson
 Monday Evening Concerts
Zipper Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/28/12
Copland Fanfare for the Common Man
Tower Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman
Higdon Percussion Concerto
Prokofiev Symp No. 5
 Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Alsop, cond.
Segerstrom Concert Hall
Costa Mesa, CA

3/29/12
Ute Lemper
 UCLA LIve
Royce Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/31/12
Beckett Waiting for Godot
 Center Theater Group
Mark Taper Forum
Los Angeles, CA

4/1/12
Bach St. John's Passion
 Gershon, cond.
Los Angeles Master Chorale
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/5/12
Part Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten
Adams Violin Concerto
Glass Symphony No. 9
 Adams, cond.
w/ Josefowicz
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/6/12
Gloria's Cause
 Dayna Hanson
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

4/10/12
Stockhausen Tierkreis
Cage Concerto for Prepared Piano
Bettison Livre des Sauvages
 Adams, cond.
w/ Cheng
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/11/12
Pacifica Quartet
 UCLA Live
Royce Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/12/12
Samsara
 KarmetiK Machine Orchestra
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

4/13/12
Beethoven Missa Solemnis
 Blomstedt, cond.
w/ Ziesak, Romberger, Croft, Muller-Brachmann
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/14/12
Truth, Revised Histories, Wishful Thinking, and Flat-Out Lies
 John Jasperse Company with ICE
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

4/16/12
Schubert Die Schone Mullerin
 w/ Goerne, Eschenbach
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/17/12
Mendelssohn Symp No. 3
Saariaho Orion
Shostakovich Symp No. 6
 Cleveland Orchestra
Welser-Möst, cond.
Segerstrom Concert Hall
Costa Mesa, CA

4/18/12
Schubert Winterreise
 w/ Goerne, Eschenbach
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/20/12
Schubert Orchestrated Songs
Schubert Symphony No. 9, "Great"
 w/ Goerne, Eschenbach
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/21/12
Gurira The Convert
 Kirk Douglas Theater
Culver City, CA

4/23/12
Helmut Lachenmann Intérieur I
Schwitters Ur Sonata
Clementi Madrigale
Clementi L'orologio di Arcevia
 Monday Evening Concerts
Zipper Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/24/12
Baroque Variations
Concerto Koln
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/26/12
Wagner Rheingold
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Harmer, Blythe
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/27/12
Janacek The Makropoulos Case
 Behlolávek, cond.
w/ Mattila
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/28/12
Wagner Die Walkure
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Voigt, Westbroek
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/28/12
Verdi La Traviata
 Noseda, cond.
w/ Poplavskaya
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/29/12
Grau and Guinand program
 Los Angeles Master Chorale
Gershon, cond.
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/29/12
Maurizio Pollini
 recital
Carnegie Hall
New York, NY

4/29/12
TR Warszawa Festen (The Celebration)
 St. Ann's Warehouse
Brooklyn, NY

4/30/12
Wagner Siegfried
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Dalayman, Bardon
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

5/2/12
GATZ
 Elevator Repair Service
Public Theater
New York, NY

5/3/12
Wagner Götterdämmerung
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Dalayman, Harmer
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

5/4/12
Britten Billy Budd
 Robertson, cond.
w/ Daszak, Gunn, Morris
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

5/6/12
Ligeti Atmospheres
Wagner Prelude to Act I of Lohengrin
Mahler Ruckert-Lieder
Bruckner Symphony No. 9
 Rattle, cond.
w/ Kozena
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/8/12
Akiho Alloy
Pereira Percussion Concerto
Berio Recital for Cathy
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ Currie, Duffy, Foundry Steel Pan Ensemble
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/9/12
Dvorak Carnival Overture
Lindberg Piano Concerto No. 2
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4
 New York Philharmonic
Gilbert, cond.
w/ Bronfman
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/10/12
Mozart Adagio and Fugue, K. 546
Vasks Distant Light
Mozart Posthorn Serenade, K. 320
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ Pogostkina
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/12/12
"The Armory"
 wild Up
Armory Center for the Arts
Pasadena, CA

5/12/12
Puccini La Boheme
 Summers, cond
Perez/Costello
Los Angeles Opera
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Los Angeles, CA

5/16/12
Arcane Collective Cold Dream Colour
 The Edge/Paul Chavez
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

5/18/12
Mozart Don Giovanni
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ Kwiecien, Burdette
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/19/12
Elaine Stritch Singin' Sondheim... One Song at a Time
 Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/24/12
Follies
 Sondheim/Goldman
Ahmanson Theater
Los Angeles, CA

5/26/12
Formalist Quartet
 Beyond Baroque
Venice, CA

5/26/12
Golijov Ainadamar
 Center Theater
Long Beach, CA

5/31/12
Adams The Gospel According to the Other Mary
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ O'Connor, Mumford, Thomas
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

6/1/12
Adams The Gospel According to the Other Mary
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ O'Connor, Mumford, Thomas
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

6/7/12
Adams Inuksuit
 Libbey Park
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/7/12
Adams Red Arc/Blue Veil
Shostakovich Six Poems of Marina Tsvetaeva, Op. 143a
Ives Concord Sonata
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/8/12
Janacek String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters"
de Leeuw Im wunderschönen Monat Mai
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/9/12
Buene Langsam und Schmachtend
Wagner Wesendonck Lieder
Berg Four Songs Op. 2
Berg Four Pieces Op. 5
Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 21 in C Major, Op. 53, Waldstein Sonata Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/9/12
Los Otros
 Fitzhugh/LaChiusa
Mark Taper Forum
Los Angeles, CA

6/9/12
Hallgrimsson Poemi, Op. 7
Sorensen Piano Concerto No. 2, “La Mattina”
Hillborg Peacock Tales
Mozart Trio in E flat “Kegelstatt” K. 498
Kurtag Hommage à Robert Schumann
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/10/12
Bartok Contrasts
Grieg Holberg Suite
Bolcom Cabaret Songs (Selections)
Copland Clarinet Concerto
Kurtag Hommage à Robert Schumann
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/10/12
Gorecki program
 Los Angeles Master Chorale
Gershon, cond.
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

6/10/12
Debussy Danses sacrée et profane
John Adams Shaker Loops
John Luther Adams Dark Waves
Stravinsky Sacre du Printemps
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

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