ARIA SERIOUS?

Peter Grimes is here, and it arrived with a fury. Reviews are starting to appear and they do this one justice. And I'm not just saying that. I love opera but this one is something incredibly special. And one I want to see again and again and again. Opera West said "it would be impossible to find a recorded performance as super-charged as this one." The San Diego Union Tribune said "you must not – must not – miss it." The Los Angeles Times calls Anthony Dean Griffey "The best Grimes of the moment." SanDiego .com called Saturday's performance a "dramatically taught and musically vibrant production that was revealing even to those who know the work well." So there you have it. Still not yet convinced that you need to see Peter Grimes ? All tickets are $50 / $25 for remaining performances. - Edward

Taken last night, this is simply my favorite image of the nearly 2000 or so pictures that were taken during Peter Grimes rehearsals. This scene is at the very end of the opera, Peter has gone out to sea to scuttle his boat. Ellen stands on shore, alone, watching him. What makes this image so wonderful for me is the movement in the background; the village beginning another day, just as the opera began, coming full circle. The lighting, the stillness of Ellen are haunting; she'll eventually turn and walk directly upstage, through the villagers, completely isolated from everyone else, ending this opera. This is serious opera, incredible theatre, and reminds me why we take risks with performing works off the beaten path from time to time. Come see Peter Grimes , it really is something special! And has AriaSerious steered you wrong before? We didn't think so. Photo is by Ken Howard. - Edward

We got 'em. You want 'em! Here are some very nice photos of Peter Grimes taken from last night's rehearsal. We'll do it again tonight, but why make you wait. All photos are by Ken Howard. Peter Grimes opens Saturday and is going to be one amazing show!

The wonderful KPBS blog, Culture Lust,is holding a contest for the best Peter Grimes opera synopsis tweet. You can read about it here and send your best Peter Grimes synopsis tweet to Angela over at Culture Lust's Twitter site . (We'll be getting our Twitter account up in a few weeks, we still think this whole internet thing is a passing fad). Winner wins... something. We humbly submit: Second apprentice drowns; town finds me guilty in witch-hunt for justice. You know, for a fisherman, I probably should’ve learned to swim… Have fun!

Tenor Anthony Dean Griffey, who is in town rehearsing Peter Grimes , took time from his busy schedule to get together with local theatre critic Pat Launer to talk about his role. Yes, he really is that nice in person but even more so, he really is that intense on stage. You can watch the interview below. Peter Grimes opens Saturday and should not be missed. You can also check out the entire Peter Grimes profile on San Diego News Network, the newest online news player in the San Diego Community by clicking here . -- Edward

Our local paper, the San Diego Union Tribune just ran an article yesterday about director John Copley and maestro Steuart Bedford, both in town for Peter Grimes , who both have a long association with the opera and the composer, Benjamin Britten. You can read the article here . But don't get any ideas and try to make potassium chloride bombs like the maestro. We're lucky he has all his fingers to conduct with... - Edward

San Diego Opera occasionally commissions writers to do interviews for us. And this time we asked local writer Anne Marie Welsh to speak with Anthony Dean Griffey , who joins us in April to sing his signature role of Peter Grimes. Usually we hold these interviews in our back pocket for a publication at a later date, but reading this one we felt we had to get this one out there. Because you need to know something: Anthony Dean Griffey is one of the nicest men around. It has been years since I last worked with Anthony, but the wait these last few months will seem like an eternity. *** Tucked into the performance calendar of lyric tenor Anthony Dean Griffey , amidst entries for his Metropolitan Opera triumph in Benjamin Britten’s masterful “Peter Grimes,” between praised concerts with the Orquestro Sinfonico de Sao Paolo in Brazil and appearances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Mahler’s ravishing “The Song of the Earth,” one entry stands out for its modesty. Just before Christma...

As promised, the wonderful Opera Tattler has published her interview with British stage director John Copley this morning and it is worth a read. John reveals he'll continue to direct after our production of Peter Grimes in April. He had originally hinted this would be his final production, but those of us who know John, knows he'll never stop. Those of you in the Bay Area can see John's staging of Idomeneo which opens tomorrow evening. Peter Grimes will open April 18, 2009 on our stage here in San Diego. - Edward

Yesterday's post got me thinking -- I really need to find the time to make listening to music an experience in itself. Since the weekend is coming up I thought I would block out a few hours to do this and I'm hoping to make this a weekly habit. So, I'm going to begin with Britten's Peter Grimes because it is the one opera next season that I really need to learn. There's some beautiful music there, and some intense story telling. I'm hoping that this weekend I can learn to appreciate it more, because this is one of these operas that demands a few careful listens to really understand the complexity and scope of the piece. If there is time, I'll then move onto a careful listen of a Tom Waits concert that NPR has online for free download. Opera and Tom Waits? They have more in common than you think and I imagine I will touch on this sometime in the future. But what I really want to know is, what are you listening to this weekend? - Edward