"Blogs are awfully decorative, don’t you think?"

A brainy reader points out to La Cieca that her little blog is mentioned this month in The New York Review of Books. The lovely and talented Sarah Boxer discusses a bevy of books on blogs and blogging, modestly mentioning only in passing her own tome on that very subject. As an example of the vast variety of blogs out there, she notes

You can read about the Iraq war from Iraqi bloggers, from American soldiers (often censored now), or from scholars like Juan Cole, whose blog, Informed Comment, summarizes, analyzes, and translates news from the front. For opera, to take another example, you have Parterre Box, which is kind of campy, or Sieglinde’s Diaries and My Favorite Intermissions, written by frequent Met-goers, or Opera Chic, a Milan-based blog focused on La Scala (which followed in great detail the scandal of Roberto Alagna‘s walkout during Aida a year ago).

La Cieca can only say, thank you cher public; without you I am nothing!

"Bad news, the fog’s getting thicker…"

“…and Marcelo‘s getting LARGER!”

[Via Opera Chic]

Wien: Wilkommen, Villazón!

The Associated Press has the first review of Rolando Villazón‘s return to the stage earlier today in a performance of Werther at the Vienna Staatsoper. Reporter George Jahn says the audience’s “huge expectations… were mostly – but not completely – met.” Apparently the tenor’s high B’s sometimes failed to soar over the Massenet orchestral climaxes, but his celebrated onstage energy and presence were on full display. Villazón won several minutes of entrance applause and “a post-performance standing ovation from an audience that normally stays glued to its seats.”

The indefatigable Opera Chic was (as she so often is!) first to blog the happy news, with the bonus of an exclusive eyewitness report.

Moon, June, Spoon

In an unreleased track from Cecilia Bartoli‘s new “Maria” CD (and you know La Cieca dotes on inédits!), the singer/musicologess performs in English! The song is “Yon moon o’er the mountains,” which, as you all know, is one of the hit tunes from Balfe’s The Maid of Artois.

In less aesthetically pleasing news, a photo of la Bartoli that should have remained unreleased instead currently graces Opera Chic.

I mulini di Signa li lascio al cara … Nicoletta Mantovani!

How sad that Luciano Pavarotti‘s final role should be Buoso Donati!

The winner and new diva

La Cieca wasn’t “in the house” for the Lucia prima last night like so many of her colleagues; instead she hosted perhaps the most popular of all her online chats thus far. Approximately 120 of you cher public logged in at some point during the night, with 75 or so on average staying for the long haul. Say what you will about Natalie Dessay or even Stephen Costello, there was really only one genuine “star is born” moment last night, and here, as dear Mathilde Marchesi would say, is “la nouvelle Melba” —

Our nomination for Camp Diva of the 2007-2008 Season: Miss Blythe Danner!

Opera Chic recoils in Scala shocker!

Our devoted and prolific little sister Opera Chic reports that, threatened with legal action from La Scala’s cadre of highly-paid lawyers, she has removed “offending” content from her site, including photographs taken inside the celebrated opera house and even her own logo. But, as with so many things Milanese, OC tells the story best.

Do it again

UPDATE: CORRECTED MP3 PLAYER

The remarkable OperaChic was in attendance for the prima of La Scala’s revival of La fille du Regiment, where Juan Diego Florez encored his first act cabaletta “Pour mon ame.” This performance marked the first “bis” of a solo aria at La Scala since 1933. Photos and an account of what must have been a truly dazzling night abound on the Chic’s website. And here’s what JDF’s “bis” sounded like:

A weekend in the country

Per Opera Chic, Roberto Alagna is off for what promises to be an interesting weekend at Franco Zeffirelli‘s palatial villa near Rome. According to Alagna’s “Chief Counsel Avvocato” Marco Rocchini, the tenor will apparently spend much of the weekend in transit, since he plans a quick visit to Paris on Tuesday, and then will return to Milan on Sunday for a television interview. Rumor has it that he will perform a selection from Aida on the chat show.

Meanwhile, not a peep of what happened or did not happen at last night’s Aida at La Scala. For better or for worse, this has become All Bobby All the Time. (And we’re not talking about Bobby Bubbles.)

Is this the face of Opera Chic?

Intrepid girl reporter Opera Chic has lead the blogosphere in her coverage of the recent Alagnadammerung. But who is this mysterious Opera Chic? An important piece of evidence has made its way into the greedy mitts of La Cieca: soon the truth may be told.

Here we see a photograph of the poster for tonight’s performance of Aida at La Scala:

This photo was published on Opera Chic’s site, and we can assume it was taken with Opera Chic’s very own digital camera. Now, cher public, La Cieca asks you to fix your gaze on the lower right-hand corner of the photo, just past the “Y” in “Chailly.” The keen eye will discern a reflection in the glass covering the poster:

Aha! Opera Chic has carelessly allowed “her” reflection to appear in the photo! And so we see that Opera Chic is, in fact, no “chick” at all, but rather a dignified-looking middle-aged man with a mustache and full beard. La Cieca could swear she knows this fellow, or at least she has seen his picture before. Oh, this is just so infuriating!

Oh, yes, yes, now, I have it! Now I know where I’ve seen that face before:

Oh. Well. Perhaps we should wait for further facts before we make a decision on Opera Chic’s identity; purely for confirmation, you know.