Even if all ferries are not yet riding on tidal flows in The Bay, virtual passengers can access virtual performances via state-of-the-art streaming services.
San Francisco Opera will stream Giacomo Puccini’s verismo triple bill of operas, Il Trittico, beginning Saturday, June 13, as part of the Company’s Opera is ON initiative.
The complete presentation of the three one-act operas, Il Tabarro (The Cloak), Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi, filmed live in high-definition at the War Memorial Opera House in 2009, will be viewable on demand for free at sfopera.com on Saturday, June 13 starting at 10 am PT and expiring at 11:59 pm the following day.
The San Francisco Opera presentation of Il Trittico captures the production by director James Robinson with sets designed by Allen Moyer, costumes by Bruno Schwengl and lighting by Christopher Maravich. The operas cover a wide range of themes: a tense love triangle (Il Tabarro); the heartbreak of a nun who misses her illegitimate son (Suor Angelica) and a witty comedy about a greedy family (Gianni Schicchi). Soprano Patricia Racette makes “triumphant” role debuts in all three operas (San Francisco Chronicle). The cast also features baritone Paolo Gavanelli, tenor Brandon Jovanovich and contralto Ewa Podleś. Patrick Summers leads the cast and the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus with “sweeping lyricism” (San Francisco Chronicle). Il Trittico is performed in Italian with English subtitles, and the stream has an approximate total running time of 2 hours, 45 minutes.
In response to the global pandemic, San Francisco Opera launched Opera is ON in April 2020 to engage with audiences and share great artistry worldwide. The streaming of past San Francisco Opera performances began on May 9 with the 2013 production of Arrigo Boito’s Mefistofele and continued with I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Moby-Dick and Lucrezia Borgia. Current and 2020–21 San Francisco Opera subscribers and members (donors of $75 and up) retain access to the streamed titles after their window of public access.
For more information, visit sfopera.com/operaison, and follow San Francisco Opera on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Spotify.