THE MET: LIVE IN HD PRESENTS MOZART’S FAMOUS OPERA, COSÌ FAN TUTTE,EXCLUSIVE TO CINEMA NOUVEAU AND SELECT STER-KINEKOR THEATRES

“…a glowing, crisp and buoyant account of Mozart’s Così fan tutte… and the winning cast performed like a crack comedic theater troupe…” – New York Times

The highly successful Season VII of Live in HD from The Metropolitan Opera in New York, launched exclusively at Cinema Nouveau and select Ster-Kinekor theatres in November last year. The season runs through to June this year, and features ten magnificent productions.

From 24 May for a limited season, the penultimate production of the current Met: Live in HD season will be screened at Cinema Nouveau and select Ster-Kinekor cinemas. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s joyful and heart-rending masterpiece, Così fan tutte, marks the triumphant return to the Met of conductor James Levine, who leads a charismatic cast in what is indisputably one of the season’s highlights.

Met Music Director James Levine conducts the first Live in HD performance of Mozart’s barbed romance Così fan tutte, a comic masterpiece about the romantic complications that ensue when a pair of friends decide to test their fiancées’ fidelity. Lesley Koenig‘s sleek production features a cast filled with rising Met stars, including Susanna Phillips (who sang the role of Musetta in La Bohème) and Isabel Leonard as the sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella; Matthew Polenzani and Rodion Pogossov as their fiancés, Ferrando and Guglielmo; and Danielle de Niese as their feisty maid Despina. Maurizio Muraro is the cynical Don Alfonso.

The soprano Susanna Phillips had what could be a breakthrough night at the Met as Fiordiligi. She has the purity and bloom of a Mozart lyric soprano. Yet her voice can lift phrases with penetrating sound and deep richness. The mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard is a plush-voiced and feisty Dorabella. In their many passages performed in sisterly duet, Ms. Phillips and Ms. Leonard sang with impressively true pitch and a beautifully blended sound. And the exquisite, vivacious soprano Danielle de Niese nearly stole the show as the sassy, worldly-wise Despina.”— The New York Times

The matinee performance of Così fan tutte on 26 April was filmed as part of the Met’s Live in HD series, and transmitted live or as a delayed broadcast to more than 1 950 cinemas in 64 countries around the world, including Cinema Nouveau in South Africa. Soprano Renée Fleming hosts the transmission. Since the Live in HDseries launched in 2006, more than 13 million tickets have been sold to opera lovers worldwide.

“This was prime Levine: a lithe, energetic, transparent account of Mozart’s miraculous score, brisk but not rushed, polished and profound.” — Associated Press

As with Così fan tutte, these grand opera productions are filmed at the magnificent Metropolitan Opera House in New York, home to some of the most talented singers, conductors, composers, orchestra musicians, stage directors, designers, visual artists, choreographers and dancers from around the world.  Their past productions have received great acclaim and have gained recognition around the world. Now, and as it has done since Live in HD began, Cinema Nouveau continues to provide audiences with the exclusive opportunity to witness these spectacular and award-winning near-live broadcasts in South Africa.

This glorious production will be screened exclusively at Cinema Nouveau and select Ster-Kinekor theatres countrywide from Saturday, 24 May: Gateway Nouveau, Durban; V&A Nouveau in Cape Town; Somerset Mall, Cape Town; Blue Route Mall, Cape Town; Garden Route Mall, George; Rosebank Nouveau and Bedford Centre in Johannesburg and at Brooklyn Nouveau, Pretoria.  Their release onto the big digital cinema screen affords South African lovers of opera the unique opportunity to become an integral part of these ‘near-live’ and breathtaking performances.

The running time of Così fan tutte is approximately 4 hours, with one intermission.

To book tickets and for more information, please visit: www.cinemanouveau.co.za| mobi-site: www.sterkinekor.mobi |Ticketline: 082 16789 (VAS rates apply) | Facebook: CinemaNouveau| Follow us on Twitter: @nouveaubuzz. Download the SK App to your smart phone for updates and to make bookings via your mobile phone.  

Video clip:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3Dp-4Y3rtg

Last two productions of the current Met: Live in HD season:

Così fan tutte – Mozart  (releases on 24 May 2014)

Conductor: James Levine

Production: Lesley Koenig

Designer: Michael Yeargan

Lighting Designer: Duane Schuler

Cast: Susanna Phillips (Fiordiligi), Isabel Leonard (Dorabella), Danielle de Niese (Despina), Matthew Polenzani (Ferrando), Rodion Pogossov (Guglielmo), Maurizio Muraro (Don Alfonso)

James Levine conducts the first Live in HD performance of Mozart’s barbed romance Così fan tutte. Lesley Koenig’s sleek production will star Susanna Phillips and Isabel Leonard as the sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella; Matthew Polenzani and Rodion Pogossov as their fiancés, Ferrando and Guglielmo; Danielle de Niese as their feisty maid Despina; and Maurizio Muraro as the cynical Don Alfonso.

La Cenerentola – Rossini  (releases on 07 June 2014)

Conductor: Fabio Luisi

Production: Cesare Lievi

Designer: Maurizio Balò

Lighting Designer: Gigi Saccomandi

Choreographer: Daniela Schiavone

Cast: Joyce DiDonato (Angelina), Juan Diego Flórez (Don Ramiro), Pietro Spagnoli (Dandini), Alessandro Corbelli (Don Magnifico), Luca Pisaroni (Alidoro)

Joyce DiDonato sings her first Met performances of the title character in Rossini’s Cinderella story, La Cenerentola, with bel canto master Juan Diego Flórez as her dashing prince. Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi leads a cast that also includes Pietro Spagnoli in his Met debut as the servant Dandini, Alessandro Corbelli as Cenerentola’s stepfather Don Magnifico, and Luca Pisaroni as Don Ramiro’s tutor, Alidoro.