“He visited Little Italy and Chinatown, posed for pictures on the Brooklyn Bridge, marveled at the tall buildings and took in shows,” writes Michael Cooper in Friday’s (11/16) New York Times. “He was the toast of Gilded Age New York, thronged by reporters and cheered on by Vanderbilts and Astors. Giacomo Puccini was a quintessentially Italian composer—’La Bohème’ and ‘Tosca’ remain opera house staples, more than a century after they were written—but his career was also shaped by the time he spent in New York. He visited twice: The Metropolitan Opera brought him over in 1907 to oversee its first productions of ‘Manon Lescaut’ and ‘Madama Butterfly,’ then again in 1910 when it staged the world premiere of his American-themed opera, ‘La Fanciulla del West.’… Puccini’s New York visits were filled with incident and intrigue, success and frustration. They are reminders that golden ages may not always sparkle as brightly to those who live through them. (After the Met’s ‘Butterfly’ in 1907, Puccini groused to a friend about the great Caruso. ‘He won’t learn anything, he’s lazy and he’s too pleased with himself,’ he wrote … ‘all the same his voice is magnificent.’)” The article includes archival photos and documents.
Posted November 20, 2018
