You should have heard the disappointment: ‘Anna Netrebko has a cold.’ The announcement, which came just after the orchestra had finished tuning, sent a ripple of deflation through the Schiller Theater. Then, the good news: ‘but she’s going to sing anyway. She asks for your patience and understanding.’ She needn’t have bothered. By the end of the evening, it was clear that Frau Netrebko now owned the role of Leonora in the same way that Callas did in the fifties, that Leontyne Price did in the sixties and that, presumably, no one else will until Frau Netrebko retires from the stage. And yet, a magnificent Leonora was only one of the many factors that propelled the Staatsoper’s new – and much anticipated – production of Il Trovatore to the status of incontestable triumph. Over the past several months, the Berlin Trovatore has been one of…
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