Leading a strong cast, Jagde proves a Calaf for the ages in Met’s “Turandot”
Puccini’s Turandot returned to the Metropolitan Opera Tuesday evening for a late spring run. The first performance brought impressive role debuts by Anna Pirozzi in the title role and Brian Jagde as Calaf. It was a night made special, not only by their magnificent singing, but also by how much fun they had performing these two notoriously demanding roles.
The Met has mounted Franco Zeffirelli’s lavish production over 220 times since it premiered in 1987. It looks better than ever due to a major refurbishment that restored its brilliance and detail. The Act II Riddle Scene, where the silver, white, and gold imperial palace appears before your eyes, never fails to prompt gasps and applause.
The Act I set is more subdued yet equally remarkable for its visual detail, including severed heads and an evocative full moon rising as the scene progresses. Even those who bemoan Alfano’s ending to the opera, which was left unfinished when Puccini died, cannot help but be swept up in the magnificence of the final tableau, as gold confetti rains down upon the stage.
Pirozzi’s international breakthrough came in 2013 when Riccardo Muti invited her to sing Abigaille in Nabucco at the Salzburg Festival. She has since become one of the leading dramatic sopranos of the day, appearing in the major European houses. The soprano is all but unknown in New York, having only sung a single performance of Lady Macbeth in Verdi’s Macbeth in 2019.
Pirozzi’s soprano, while not immense, has power to spare when singing the role’s most high-flying lines. There is steel in the voice, but brilliance too, with never any sign of strain, regardless of tessitura or volume. More impressive still is the expansive color palette and expressiveness with which she paints Puccini’s vocal lines.
‘In questa reggia’ was all the more impressive for the softness and tenderness with which she sang of the tragic fate of Princess Lou-Ling. When Turandot confronted Calaf in one desperate attempt to dissuade him from claiming his prize, Pirozzi displayed a surprisingly soft, almost innocent approach to aid her efforts. The Italian soprano’s ability to express Turandot’s vulnerability and gradual awakening to the mysteries of love made the opera’s final scene all the more potent.
Without diminishing Pirozzi’s impressive Turandot, Brian Jagde was the star of the evening. Slim and toned, his Calaf was as handsome as his voice was thrilling. There is scant lightness and humor in the role, but Jagde exploited what little there is to create an exceptionally multifaceted Calaf. He was actually playful in the Riddle Scene, teasing Turandot as he solved the final puzzle. For Jagde, the words, “Il mio nome non sai”, Calaf’s response to Turandot’s pleas for him to reveal his name, were a playful act of seduction. He revealed it to her as a dare, rather than a capitulation.
As with Pirozzi, Jagde brought a remarkable ease to the role, especially to “Nessun dorma.” The aria had all the dramatic punch required, but was enriched immeasurably by the conversational approach he brought to it. This intimacy made for a wonderfully complex and human Calaf, rather than a one-dimensional heroic action figure, which is often the case.
Angel Blue was reprising Liù, which she had previously sung once in the house in 2024. Her “Signore, ascolta!” didn’t take flight due to some stillborn, colorless high notes. By Act III, however, Blue was in top form, with her touching acting and emotive singing as moving in the scene preceding “Tu che di gel sei cinta” as the aria itself. Dramatically, Liù is Blue’s finest achievement at the Met.
John Relyea was forthright and firm-voiced as Timur. Joo Won Kang was a particularly fine, expressive Ping, with Tony Stevenson’s Pang and Andrew Stenson’s Pong equally vivid creations. The three singers find the humanity in the roles, never playing them merely as caricatures for laughs.
The atmosphere was charged with excitement from the Ukrainian conductor Oksana Lyniv’s first downbeat. Ben Brady’s Mandarin turned up the heat even more. The role isn’t generally a scene stealer, but Brady’s bass-baritone commands attention.
Turandot runs through June 6 with Anna Pirozzi and Liùdmyla Monastyrska sharing the role of Turandot, Brian Jagde and Roberto Alagna as Calaf, and Angel Blue and Juliana Grigoryan as Liù. metopera.org
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