Based on Louisa May Alcott’s enduringly popular novel about the adventures of Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy in civil-war era New England, Mark Adamo’s opera Little Women has been performed in more than 70 national and international engagements since its 1998 première by Houston Grand Opera and has achieved the status of an American classic.
This recording, with a superb cast expertly directed for television, vividly brings to life an opera that The New Yorker hailed as “A beautifully crafted work, brilliantly molding Alcott’s tale into operatic form,” and The New York Times dubbed a “masterpiece”.
Stage Production Director: Peter Webster
Directed for Television by Brian Large
Set Designer: Christopher McCollum
Sung in English • Subtitles in English
Total Running Time: 114:53
NTSC: No Region Coding • Aspect Ratio: 16:9 • PCM Stereo 2.0
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Christmas 2010
****
“It's expertly staged and acted, and interesting to see the young Joyce DiDonato in repertoire far removed from her familiar one.”
March 2011
“What was an outstanding cast in 2000 is still astounding today...[Novacek] patiently creates for Jo a spectrum of intimate depth and then explores it with a sure dramatic touch and a voice of power and beauty...a convincing demonstration that Little Women could be an audience-pleaser wherever it plays.”
9th December 2010
***
“It will prove too sentimental for some tastes...But you can't fault the performance, filmed in 2002 during a revival of the original Houston production. Joyce DiDonato fans will be fascinated by her self-assured Meg. But it's Stephanie Novacek's self-willed Jo, and Stacey Tappan, heart-rending as fragile Beth, that make the strongest impression.”
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