Thomas Allen and Marta Marquez - La ci darem la mano - ROH 1992 (with recitative)

[drtmuir]

He is taking so much time with the recitative here, Haitink could run out and get a cup of coffee. ;) By this point, he could do whatever he wanted.

[interpreterr]

@drtmuir He looks like some kind of predator, calmly eyeing his next victim and making her very uncomfortable (which is absolutely wonderful in this context). Zerlina's reaction, by the way, is spot-on.

[drtmuir]

@interpreterr Well, everybody understimates Zerlina! I think you can spin Zerlina in a number of different ways, and it will still be right.

[drtmuir]

@interpreterr Looking at this again, the way they do this reminds me a lot of Richard III, Act I sc 2-- Richard and Lady Anne. I've seen this done all kinds of ways (that's one great thing about the piece, it can work in a any number of ways), and this is certainly one of the nastiest.

[interpreterr]

@drtmuir Allen as Richard III - interesting.... Who could be his Lady Anne?

[90lysander]

Allen is awesome as always; the real surprise here is Marquez. So many Zerlinas come off as way too coy, flirty, and give in far too easily to the Don's advances. She actually puts up a good resistance, and her singing and acting are both exemplary. Brava!

[interpreterr]

@90lysander I agree. I think Marquez is absolutely brilliant at showing Zerlina's conflicting emotions.

[kimancuo]

Marta is better than Allen on this clip though, much more expressive, perfect vocals and a better actor.

[antmusique]

Thank you for posting this, as well as the other Allen clips. It's great to see more of his stuff up on YouTube!

Just looking at the related videos, there are at least 6 different versions of him singing this duet on YouTube (five staged and one from a concert). It just shows how much he owned the role in the 80s / early 90s.

[kostaspapaza]

this is just great. Yes i think too that this is the best interpretation of the the duet! thanks again for posting this!

[Sieglinde84]

Why oh why has Elvira to ruin this? :D

[fairlytaleofnewyork]

Thanks for this uploads. I have acually seen this version in ROH. It was really great. Allen is my favorite Giovanni.

[interpreterr]

You're both welcome. I agree, this is very intense (I couldn't get my eyes off the screen when I first saw it...)

[schweitzer006325]

An excellent rendition of this classic duet. A little slow-paced than most versions but it only means more emotional impact...I never seen Thomas Allen look so intense as he does here as the Don.

Thanks for posting this up. I heard that this production was made in celebration of Allen's 20 years with the Royal Opera company in 1992...thanks again!