Product Details

• Actors: Kiri Te Kanawa, Wolfgang Brendel, Marie McLaughlin, David Kuebler, Helga Dernesch
• Directors: Brian Large
• Writers: Hugo von Hofmannsthal
• Format: Classical, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Polygram Video
• VHS Release Date: March 11, 1997
• Run Time: 166 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304400217
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #360,791 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Criticizing Richard Strauss for composing melodically enduring operas is as pointless as lambasting Vermeer for painting only exquisite interior scenes. Those who say Strauss never improved on Rosenkavalier may be right, but when such beguiling sounds kept coming from his music for the next 30 years of his life, there shouldn't be any quibbles.

Arabella follows a woman who cannot make up her mind on a suitor and, like most Strauss operas, ends with a meltingly lovely duet. Taped at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1994 under the baton of conductor Christian Thielemann, this production features Kiri Te Kanawa in the title role; her acting is mediocre, but vocally she never forces anything and at least sounds like the perfect Arabella. Wolfgang Brendel does well with Mandryka, who finally ends up with Arabella, and Marie McLaughlin as Zdenka makes a sympathetic younger sister to the heroine. Otto Schenk's production is sturdily conservative, the video transfer is acceptable if unspectacular, and the sound mix is CD-quality. --Kevin Filipski

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent DVD of an excellent performance, June 30, 2001

By 

Sea Air - See all my reviews

This review is from: Richard Strauss - Arabella / Thielemann, Te Kanawa, Brendel, Metropolitan Opera (DVD)

How lucky we are to have this gorgeous Metropolitan Opera production on such a high-quality DVD! If you missed the original 1995 telecast of this opera, you have yet to discover the joys of this production. Arabella is a comedy of manners set in 1860s Vienna. Arabella's parents have a fading fortune, so they can afford to marry off only one of their two daughters; the other, Zdenka, they dress as a boy and refer to as Zdenke. I won't give away the rest of the story; it's really worth it to let this magnificent performance unfold and find out what happens that way. The cast was the best that could possibly be assembled at the time, with Wolfgang Brendel, quite convincing as the young, hot-blooded Mandryka, in his debut of the role. Kiri Te Kanawa is a legendary Strauss singer, and though she is often criticized for poor interpretation, in this opera her subtle acting shines. For example, look at her reaction when she meets Mandryka, the man she had been crushing on witho!ut knowing who he was. Her singing is consistently beautiful and soft, and her stage presence is radiant, in spite of her fifty years at the time of this taping. Arabella is supposed to be about twenty years old, and Kiri truly exudes the youth of the character, yet manages to convey the maturity that colors her almost maternal relationship with her younger sister Zdenka. Helga Dernesch and Donald McIntyre are animated as Arabella's parents. Marie McLaughlin is a passionate Zdenka. We really feel for her throughout the opera, as she longs for femininity and love. A special bonus in this production is the now-stellar Nathalie Dessay as Die Fiakermilli. She flaunts her coloratura in Act II. Christinan Thielemann is a sensitive conductor, and the MET orchestra plays flawlessly. The DVD transfer is superb. Subtitles available in German (original language), French, English, and Chinese. (Special note: Renée Fleming will perform in this same production at the MET in November 2001. G!et your tickets!)

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Production of a Great Opera, December 4, 2006

By 

William Taylor - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Richard Strauss - Arabella / Thielemann, Te Kanawa, Brendel, Metropolitan Opera (DVD)

This is a very well sculpted performance of this opera. Thielmann and the MET Orchestra give a great reading of the score. All aspects of this densely orchestrated piece are defined and carefully articulated. Wonderful character is maintained throughout the body of work by Thielmann's vision. I think that a problem most conductors have with Richard Strauss (Not to Mention Mahler as well) is that they take the music too seriously! Strauss is very passionate and beautiful... But he has a very characteristic light and comical side as well. Arabella is a perfect example of this... It's a beautiful love story and plays out with a lot of humor. Not just in the story, but in the music as well. Thielmann does a great job in finding that balance of emotion and being consistent with it throughout the opera. Kiri Te Kanawa gives a fantastic performance as Arabella and the supporting cast is divine. Marie McGlaughlin gives a slightly forced but, gorgeous Zdenka. Donald McIntyre, who I know from his role as Wotan in Wagner's Ring Cycle, conducted by Piere Boulez, is a great Graf Waldner. Natalie Dessay is so cute and so amazingly talented that she almost steals the show in the second act! Wolfgang Brendel and David Kuebler play the two strong male roles of Mandryka and Matteo respectively. Their vocal and acting performances are powerful and fun. The costumes are convincing and the sets are very detailed which helps establish the stage action perfectly. I can't say anything bad about it... Strongly recommended.

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rich, beautiful and gentile Strauss!, February 23, 2006

By 

D. J. Edwards "donaldjedwards" (Cheshire, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Richard Strauss - Arabella / Thielemann, Te Kanawa, Brendel, Metropolitan Opera (DVD)

Great to read Amazon's own review of this dvd Arabella! When you join melodious Strauss with Kiri Te Kanawa and the Met orchestra you have vintage vocal and instrumental tone along with a timber of sheer beauty. Granted Strauss may not everybody's forte but this performance deserves at least a hearing. The only objection I have is that Arabella refers to herself as waiting for the right man; I like to think that she's looking for the right person not waiting for that white horse and dowdy prince. Add the rest of this wonderful cast and Thielemann in the pit and you have wondrous music making. Fiakermilli is a silly role but Dessay makes it thrilling. At least she doesn't come running on the stage in disheveled clothing looking for an ax or wearing almost nothing demanding somebody's head. Putting silly aside this is a great Met release. The Arabella-Zdenka duet in Act one is beautifully sung; the Mandryka - Arabella duet in Act three is extremely beautiful and the closing monologue is deeply moving. Don't pass it up. It forms a great trio with Ariadne and Rosenkavalier, if not totally in their class.