Post-end-of-Met-season-week post
First sign of withdrawal: rapid breathing
Now that my house is dark, with little to do, Sieglinde's cruising the databases. I picked out a few divas of recent interest, and organized bits of detail from their Met lives. (This is all for a manuscript I’m planning to write, for submission to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences no less, regarding the biomathematical modeling of a diva's career using bifurcation/chaos theory and simple dynamics of large solids. It has potential.) You can help Sieglinde with the interpretation of data by e-mailing her. Don’t be shy.
“RAW” DATA
(in order of vocal appearance in this universe)
Renata Scotto, 71, born February 24, 1934. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 31 (10/13/1965) as Butterfly (Madama Butterfly). Total 314 performances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 26 roles (in order of first performance): Butterfly, Lucia, Adina, Violetta, Gilda, Marguerite, Amina, Mimi, Elena (Vespri), Giorgetta, Angelica, Lauretta (Trittico), Leonora (Trovatore), Berthe (La Prophete), Adriana, Desdemona, Luisa Miller, Elisabetta, Gioconda, Manon Lescaut, Verdi Requiem soprano, Norma, Lady Macbeth, Francesca da Rimini, Tosca, Vitellia. Last appearance: 1/17/1987 (Butterfly), 22 years at the Met.
Mirella Freni, 70, born February 27, 1935. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 30 (9/29/1965) as Mimi (La Boheme). Total 140 performances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 13 roles (in order of first performance): Mimi, Adina, Liu, Marguerite, Juliette, Susanna, Micaela, Elisabetta, Manon Lescaut, Tatyana, Alice Ford, Adriana, Fedora. Last appearance: 5/15/2005 (Freni gala), 40 years at the Met.
Lorraine Hunt-Lieberson, born March 1, 1954. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 45 (12/20/1999) as Myrtle Wilson (Great Gatsby). Total 17 performances with the company (including one gala) of 2 roles (in order of first performance): Myrtle Wilson, Dido (Troyens). Last (latest?) appearance: 2/22/2003 (Dido). 3 years at the Met.
Aprile Millo, 47, born April 14, 1958. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 26 (6/20/1984) as Amelia (Simon Boccanegra). Total 152 appearances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 14 roles (in order of first performance): Elvira (Ernani, in Brooklyn 6/20/1984), Amelia (Simon Boccanegra), Elisabetta, Aida, Liu, Desdemona, Luisa Miller, Leonora (Trovatore), Amelia (Ballo), Maddalena, Giselda, Tosca, Margherita/Elena (Mefistofele). Latest (last?) appearance: 5/19/2005 (Tosca), 21 years at the Met.
Renée Fleming, 46, born February 14, 1959. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 32 (3/16/1991) as the Countess (Nozze di Figaro). Total 131 appearances with the company (including galas, concerts, tours) of 17 roles (in order of first performance): Countess (Figaro), Rosina (Ghosts of Versailles), Pamina, Desdemona, Ellen Orford, Fiordiligi, Marguerite, Rusalka, Manon, Susannah, Marschallin, Donna Anna, Verdi Requiem soprano, Arabella, Imogene, Violetta, Rodelinda. Latest appearance: 1/6/2005 (Rodelinda), 14 years at the Met.
Deborah Voigt, 44, born August 4, 1960. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 31 (10/17/1991) as Amelia (Ballo in Maschera). Total 156 performances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 12 roles (in order of first performance): Amelia (Ballo), Chrysothemis, Leonora (Trovatore), Ariadne, Senta, Leonora (Forza), Sieglinde, Elsa, Aida, Kaiserin, Cassandre, Elisabeth. Latest appearance: 4/28/2005 (Amelia, Ballo), 14 years at the Met.
Karita Mattila, 44, born September 5, 1960. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 29 (3/22/1990) as Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni). Total 86 performances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 11 roles (in order of first performance): Donna Elvira, Eva, Lisa, Musetta, Elsa, Amelia (Simon Boccanegra), Leonore, Chrysothemis, Jenufa, Salome, Kat’a. Latest appearance: 1/1/2005 (Kat’a). 15 years at the Met.
Angela Gheorghiu, 39, born September 7, 1965. Metropolitan Opera debut at age 28 (12/4/1993) as Mimi (La Boheme). Total of 55 performances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 6 roles (in order of first performance): Mimi, Liu, Micaela, Juliette, Adina, Marguerite. Latest appearance: 3/18/2003 (Marguerite). 10 years at the Met.
Sondra Radvanovsky, born April 11, 19??. Metropolitan Opera debut at age ?? (12/9/1996) as Countess Ceprano (quiz: can you name the opera??). Total of 111 performances with the company (including galas, concerts, and tours) of 18 roles (in order of first performance): Countess Ceprano, Priestess (another quiz: name the opera), Kate Pinkerton, Antonia & Stella, Dorotea (name this one too!), Leonora (Trovatore), Micaela, Serving Woman (this should be easy!), Gutrune, Freia, Musetta, Violetta (Met at the Parks), Luisa Miller, Donna Anna, Elena (Vespri), Elisabetta, Roxane (Cyrano de Bergerac). Latest appearance, 5/20/2005 (Roxane). 9 years at the Met.
PRELIMINARY INTERPRETATION
1. Someone’s lying about her age. (You get two guesses.)
2. Longevity trumps intensity (Freni v. Scotto).
3. Intensity trumps longevity (Millo v. Millo).
4. Fleming is diva (lowest appearance/role ratio, at 7.71, not including the outlier Radvanovsky); Voigt is most slighted (highest appearance/role ratio, at 13.00);
6. Scotto and Millo’s candles burn(ed) at both ends; Scotto’s candle was thicker; Millo’s candle, ribboned with “Mea Culpa,” drips all over.
7. Mattila doesn’t really like the Met. (She’s scared of Lois & Co. and Debbie.)
8. The Met doesn’t really like Hunt-Lieberson. (But that doesn’t stop the Angela.)
9. No one has done Klytamnestra as of yet. Who shall be first? (Sieglinde computes the following odds: Scotto, 5:1; Millo, 50:1 as cover; Fleming, even money—she’ll do anyone at least once.)
10. Hardest worker: Scotto (14.27 appearances/year). Hardest to type: Sondra Radvanovsky. Hardest to believe: Millo is only a year older than Fleming. Second hardest to believe: Sondra was Serving Woman to Schnaut/Voigt/Schwarz, and Priestess to Hasmik Papian.
[Please send missing Sondra birth year info to Sieglinde.]
EDIT: Lovely ex-Grisi Nick, over at trrill, has (a) sent me Sondra's birth year info (1969) and (b) made Sieglinde's day (she's still younger than her diva!!)
