San Francisco Opera: Lohengrin

Lohengrin, Act III

David Alden production, staged at San Francisco Opera

Kristinn Sigmundsson as King Heinrich

SFO Chorus

Photo: Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera

SFO's Lohengrin opened on Sunday, October 15, and I'd say they've got a hit. The production has its issues, discussed in greater or lesser detail in Joshua Kosman's review and mine. He's more positive about Simon O'Neill than I am. Let me note that O'Neill is fine; he sings musically and with a lot of power. But the three other principals are all outstanding and outshine him vocally and dramatically. Better direction would have helped, to be sure; I feel that he's underdirected. 

The debuts and the excellence of Eun Sun Kim's Wagner are the truly big stories here. After decades of mostly hearing the great Donald Runnicles in Wagner, with Nicola Luisotti dipping a toe only into the German romantic repertory, with Lohengrin and Salome, of course I wondered what she'd be like. By the end of the Act I prelude I knew all was well and that the opera was in good hands; the performance was truly magnificent.

More reviews to come, I'm sure:

• Joshua Kosman, SF Chronicle
• Lisa Hirsch, SFCV
• Michael Anthonio, Parterre Box ("Swan's weh"!!)
• Opera Tattler
• Patrick Vaz, The Reverberate Hills
• Michael Milenski, Opera Today
• Caroline Crawford (Bay City News at SF Gate?)
• Harvey Steiman, Seen & Heard International
• Charles Lewis, 48 Hills
• Andrew Rombakis, Wagner Society of New York 

Previously:

• Mark Berry, Boulezian, 2018 staging in London
• Mark Berry, Boulezian, 2022 staging in London