So, I saw a listing for an opera called Nixon in China. And my reaction was, “Wait, seriously? There’s an opera about Nixon in China???” Well, yes, it seems there is.
I’m nearly entirely uninitiated when it comes to opera. I saw Porgy and Bess last year (which, the SDMB informed me, does count). I have a few Maria Callas CDs. Otherwise, I’m pretty much ignorant of opera.
I know nothing of the composer or the librettist other than having just read their Wiki pages. Still …I can’t help but feel very very curious. C’mon! It’s an opera about Nixon in China! Admit it, you’re curious too!!!
So, if any resident opera heads have anything interesting to say about it, I may actually buy a ticket to go see it. Anyone familiar with it?
Assuming the show itself is recommended, is anyone here familiar with the San Diego Opera? If the show is good, can I expect that their production of it will be good?
Nixon is far and away the most recognized and known American in China. Lots of houses with his picture in their kitchen, like with the Pope or Virgin Mary elsewhere.
It was a huge bore, even for opera. And I say this as a rabid opera fan.
All I can remember of it was the guys playing Nixon and Mao sitting together on two chairs. Nixon kept shifting around in his seat and singing, “History holds its breath” over and over.
I remember distinctly thinking, “Well it better hold its breath, 'cause it looks like you’re trying real hard not to fart.”
Nixon in China is a modern classic and has been performed all over the world. The composer, John Adams, is a Pulitzer Prize winner and is generally considered one of the greatest living composers.
I’m familiar with the opera (I actually bought it on LP back in 1987). My personal opinion is that Act I is terrific, Act II is so-so, and Act III is deadly dull.
If you’re curious about it, there’s a single-disc “highlights” recording available (I think it’s on Spotify, too). You might want to check that out before springing for a ticket.
The San Diego Opera is one of the leading professional opera companies in the USA, so I’m sure their production is top-notch.
John Adams in general likes to write on subjects of contemporary socio-political relevance. His other operas include Death of Klinghoffer (which caused quite a stir at the Met last year) about the 1985 hijacking of the Achille Lauro cruiseliner by PLF terrorists, and Doctor Atomic, about the Manhattan project.
I’m not familiar with Nixon in China, but subject wise it’s pretty par for the course for Adams.
ETA: That is, I’ve never seen it or listened to it. I’m quite familiar with its existence.
Nice! Someone chimes in with an enthusiastic endorsement …
…oh, maybe not such an enthusiastic endorsement.
Well, I’ll let this post stand as my final bump. I thought we had a few other opera fans here so I’ll check back and see if anyone has offered any different opinions. Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts/experience on this!
I’ve ‘seen’ it twice. OK, the second time was a concert performance (at the BBC Proms with Adams himself conducting).
That was exactly my view. The opening scene is magnificent. The extended build-up in the dramatic tension makes Nixon’s entrance one of the best in any opera. But it’s steadily downhill from then on. It doesn’t help that the basic joke, a grand opera with Richard Nixon as the hero, while very funny, cannot really be developed. The other clever aspect is how Adams and Goodman realised that the banalities of diplomatic language work rather well as grand-opera pomposity. I seem to remember enjoying the third act rather better the second time I heard it, but it still seemed to be going nowhere in particular, which, to be fair, may actually be the point.
Adams’s operas can be very uneven. Doctor Atomic has great ends to both acts but not much else.
bienville, since you said you weren’t familiar with the composer, I’d suggest you research his musical style, or at least, listen to some of his music. (You can probably find quite a bit of it online.) I’d suggest seeing the opera only if you find you really like his musical style. One thing is for sure, this isn’t going to sound like traditional opera. (I like John Adams’s musical style, but I know it’s not for everybody - and I don’t mean to sound like a snob at all in saying this.) If you end up not liking the music at the opera, you might be stuck for a couple of hours in what will end up not being a particularly enjoyable activity.
I saw the NY Metropolitan Opera version. It was new, and interesting, and while I am glad to have had the experience, I will be happy enough not to ever see it again. Kissinger was a buffo role, which was funny, at least.
(I should note that I don’t care for opera in English. The words are hard for me to understand in song, and I quite unreasonably feel like they shouldn’t be in my native language. I also didn’t like Peter Grimes, FWIW.)