Author Archives: barczablog

The Next Wave @ RBA

Posted on March 20, 2019 by barczablog

A concert is not a litmus test but even so today’s free noon-hour concert at the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre is an unmistakable sign of health in the community of women creating opera in this country, and apt in the home … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Opera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Berlioz 150   

Posted on March 17, 2019 by barczablog

I started writing this one and shoved it aside because I’m swamped with several things at the same time.  That’s life in Toronto if you’re keeping up with the music or opera or theatre scene, let alone trying to see … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal ruminations & essays | Tagged , | 2 Comments

ELLES—Marina Thibeault

Posted on March 17, 2019 by barczablog

The new ATMA Classics CD ELLES seems apt for a month when there seems to be a great deal of music, opera & theatre created by women, celebrating female creativity, and perhaps extra noticeable with last week’s International Women’s Day … Continue reading →

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Unsafe

Posted on March 15, 2019 by barczablog

There are nights when the theatre reminds you how lucky you are. You may think that I say this too often, but I don’t believe we say it often enough, especially the entitled white upper class twits I think of … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Politics, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Episode V: beyond popularity

Posted on March 14, 2019 by barczablog

Films with live accompaniment are becoming a regular experience. I don’t mean that the novelty is wearing off, at least I hope not. But what began as an experiment has become a new revenue-stream for the Toronto Symphony, somewhere between … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Evolving past jealousy in opera

Posted on March 13, 2019 by barczablog

I was thinking about jealousy today.  It’s funny how sometimes a word can come up over and over again. I confessed to some envy in my last review, admiring the way Stephen Walsh wrote about Debussy.  I don’t know if … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Psychology and perception | 1 Comment

Debussy: A Painter in Sound

Posted on March 12, 2019 by barczablog

Stephen Walsh’s recent book Debussy: A Painter in Sound from Faber & Faber, is a welcome addition to the literature concerning a man whose star continues to rise, a composer respected & loved more in the 21st century than ever before. … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Music and musicology | Tagged , | 1 Comment

School Girls; or The African Mean Girls Play

Posted on March 11, 2019 by barczablog

I’ve just seen Jocelyn Bioh’s School Girls, presented by Obsidian Theatre in association with Nightwood Theatre at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. The co-production is a natural considering how perfectly the play fulfills the mandates of both companies, a piece … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Revisor

Posted on March 8, 2019 by barczablog

The hybrid creation Revisor from Jonathon Young and Crystal Pite is so much more than I can put into words, a piece of theatre that explores the process of signification while showing us the ways that it breaks down. It’s … Continue reading →

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Questions for Cecilia Livingston: Balancing the Score

Posted on March 7, 2019 by barczablog

A little over five years ago, I interviewed composer Cecilia Livingston in anticipation of her new opera commission The Masque of the Red Death, an occasion for some marvelous comments about composing & opera (see what I mean? ). I’m not … Continue reading →

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