Castleton Opera at Zellerbach

  The brutal and the ridiculous—as art. It is seldom possible to view works of art in context. We need to allow for the mores and prejudices of their time. That was painfully apparent at Zellerbach Hall last weekend, where the denigration of women was the context, if not the heart, of the Castleton Opera Project. Thursday and Friday they mounted The Rape of Lucretia,...

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Lucia di Lammermoor at Metropolitan Opera

A night at the Met: murder, madness and popcorn. The promise of technology is fickle, intersecting our lives in ways that can be devastating or impersonal. But occasionally that promise comes through, and our world makes small changes for the better. Two years ago the Metropolitan Opera started an experiment in simulcasts, and it has taken off like wildfire. Now thousands of movie theaters around the world are...

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