At age 84, conductor Julius Rudel (pictured)
shows no signs of slowing down.
Just days after he leads the first-ever American performances
of Walter Braunfels’ criminally neglected opera from the 1920s,
"The Birds," at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston,
S.C., Rudel will take the podium to conduct Camille Saint-Saens’
"Samson et Dalila" on June 21 as part of the free "Met
in the Parks" event in Prospect Park.
Saint-Saens’ opera – the only one by this prolific French composer
to enter the standard operatic repertoire – has a story taken
directly from Chapter 16 of the Book of Judges in the Bible.
In it, Jewish leader Samson is betrayed by his vengeful lover
Dalila by cutting off the source of his strength: his hair. Before
he dies, he prays to Jehovah to restore his might and is able
to topple the temple, killing himself and his enemies.
Although Saint-Saens never earned a reputation as a premier opera
composer, with "Samson et Dalila" he outdid himself:
a highly dramatic story with larger-than-life characters, along
with his strongest music, add up to a satisfying opera. And the
title roles are always highly sought-after – for the June 21
"Met in the Parks" performance, tenor Clifton Forbis
sings Samson and mezzo-soprano Irina Mishura sings Dalila.
Add to that the redoubtable Met Orchestra playing under Rudel’s
baton, and it will surely be a memorable night at the opera in
the park.
The concert begins at 8 pm in the Long Meadow ball fields in
Park Slope. Enter Prospect Park at Ninth Street and Prospect
Park West. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.metopera.org or call
(212) 362-6000.