Metropolitan Opera Archives

"Turandot," which Metropolitan Opera played Tuesday at Masonic Auditorium, has always been one of the company's most brilliant productions. It was so when the company opened its season here with it six years ago. It was more so Tuesday. The same principals were there - Birgit Nilsson as the Princess Turandot and Franco Corelli as the Prince Calaf, who successfully guesses the princess' three riddles and eventually gains her love. To that extent - the principals, the superb settings and costumes - the production was like the first one.

The added brilliance came from three things.

First, Corelli used to be content to adopt an open-legged stance and bellow. His voice is the finest and fullest tenor on the stage today. He has learned to discipline that voice and to act, both with his vocal chords and his body.

The second point was the choice this year of Liu the slave girl who dies for love of the prince. This time it was Anna Motto, who is a beautiful woman despite the fright wig she wore and has one of the loveliest lyric sopranos in the world.

To add to the excellence, conducting was Zubin Mehta, a great conductor both of opera and symphony. There were occasions when the orchestra sounded a bit loud, but "Turandot" is not an opera to be played softly.

As for Miss Nilsson, her voice - hard, true and brilliant - couldn't be bettered. As in

the first performance, she was perfection. One can hardly write about "Turandot" without mentioning the commissioners Ping, Pang and Pong, sung and acted delightfully, especially in their second act scene, by Frank Guarrera, Robert Nagy and Charles Anthony.

In short, the Metropolitan's performance of Puccini's last opera, continued to justify the troupe's reputation thoroughness and brilliance:

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