Category Archives: Books

ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-FIVE YEARS AGO TODAY IN CHICAGO: THE GREAT WIN AN OPERA HOUSE LOTTERY!

“As 21 January 1867 dawned, exciting and auspicious events were occurring all across the operatic world. In faraway Paris, Giuseppe Verdi was put­ting the finishing touches on his new opera, Don Carlos, in preparation for its eagerly awaited l’Opera premiere for the Paris Exposition. Jules Massenet was ardently overseeing the final rehearsals for his own […]

January 21, 2022 – 6:29 am | By Paul Kuritz | Posted in Art, Books, from Paul, History, Music, Opera | Comments Off on ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-FIVE YEARS AGO TODAY IN CHICAGO: THE GREAT WIN AN OPERA HOUSE LOTTERY!

NEW WEBSITE: THE S YMBOLIC WORLD- Chesterton for the 21st Century

                  G.K. Chesterton called them  fairy tales. They inspired C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. SOME solemn and superficial people (for nearly all very superficial people are solemn) have declared that the fairy-tales are immoral; they base this upon some accidental circumstances or regrettable incidents in the war […]

May 28, 2020 – 10:42 am | By Paul Kuritz | Posted in Art, Books, Current Events, from Paul, History, Media, Men and Women, Movies, Music, Opera, Poetry, Quotations, Science, The Gospel of the Kingdom, Theater, Theology, Uncategorized, Web Sites | Comments Off on NEW WEBSITE: THE S YMBOLIC WORLD- Chesterton for the 21st Century

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE SHAW’S MRS. WARREN’S PROFESSION: PATERNITY

Despite the existence of DNA testing, and sites like Ancestry.com, genealogy can still offer major surprises and uproars in a person’s life. Just ask Oedipus Rex. Or Captain Adolph in Strindberg’s The Father. Or ask Bernard Shaw. The question of paternity tormented George Bernard Shaw all his life. His mother lived in a ménage a […]

March 13, 2020 – 1:31 pm | By Paul Kuritz | Posted in Acting, Books, Current Events, from Paul, History, Men and Women, Quotations, Television, Theater, Uncategorized | Comments Off on WHY YOU SHOULD SEE SHAW’S MRS. WARREN’S PROFESSION: PATERNITY

THE MET’S AGRIPPINA: STELLAR MUSIC, UNFORTUNATE STAGING

Librettist Vincenzo Grimani had a wonderful idea for a comic opera: a neo-classical comedy of manners featuring history’s most monstrous tyrants as the main characters! The comic incongruity would be enormous, as  the murderous, depraved butchers of Rome’s ancient past acted with impeccable decorum and good taste. Imagine seeing Nero and his court in a […]

February 29, 2020 – 5:46 pm | By Paul Kuritz | Posted in Acting, Books, Current Events, from Paul, History, Men and Women, Music, Opera, Politics, Quotations | Comments Off on THE MET’S AGRIPPINA: STELLAR MUSIC, UNFORTUNATE STAGING

THE MET’S PORGY AND BESS: It’s Got Plenty of Vigor and Talent

The distinguished opera historian and critic Charles Osborne considers George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess to be “the most successful American contribution to twentieth century opera.”[i] Like all works for the stage, the final product is the result of a collaboration among many creative artists working to transform the play Porgy into a musical work. The […]

February 2, 2020 – 6:03 pm | By Paul Kuritz | Posted in Acting, Books, Current Events, Dance, from Paul, History, Men and Women, Music, Opera, The Gospel of the Kingdom, Theater, Theology, Uncategorized | Comments Off on THE MET’S PORGY AND BESS: It’s Got Plenty of Vigor and Talent