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True Tales from the Mad, Mad, Mad World of Opera
An insider’s view of the opera world from one of its greatest figures.
Everything about opera is larger than life, but the bigger the art form, the bigger the potential for disaster. When things go wrong at the opera house, they really go wrong. No one has a greater or more intimate knowledge of such moments than Lotfi Mansouri. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, Mansouri has directed nearly 500 productions at major opera houses around the globe.
Mansouri has gathered a collection of discrete vignettes that recount unforgettable and revealing moments at the opera as personally experienced or witnessed by him. From unbelievable snafus to unfortunate mishaps to astounding coincidences, these vignettes feature some of the biggest names in opera, as well as prominent figures from politics and more. From the hilarious to the bizarre, this is a reader-friendly look at what is often thought of as an overly serious, even mysterious form of art.
Everything about opera is larger than life, but the bigger the art form, the bigger the potential for disaster. When things go wrong at the opera house, they really go wrong. No one has a greater or more intimate knowledge of such moments than Lotfi Mansouri. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, Mansouri has directed nearly 500 productions at major opera houses around the globe.
Mansouri has gathered a collection of discrete vignettes that recount unforgettable and revealing moments at the opera as personally experienced or witnessed by him. From unbelievable snafus to unfortunate mishaps to astounding coincidences, these vignettes feature some of the biggest names in opera, as well as prominent figures from politics and more. From the hilarious to the bizarre, this is a reader-friendly look at what is often thought of as an overly serious, even mysterious form of art.
- GenresMusicNonfictionBiography
184 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 25, 2017
For someone who has been an opera fan since the age of seven, this book was truly mad and laugh out loud funny! My parents had 2nd row season tickets to the Liceo while we lived in Barcelona. Granted, I was "forced" to go see all the operas my dad did not like, meaning anything that wasn't Bel Canto. So I was exposed to 5 hour long Wagner operas at that young age, but according to my mom, I was very well behaved and sat through it. Needless to say, I can't handle those operas anymore and am, like my father, a bel canto only opera fan.
The behind the scenes of this book, make rock stars look tame in comparison. The level of soap opera divas (both female and male) and antics is amazing. Mansouri had the "priviledge" of touring with and overseeing many operas around the world, but his highlights of Italy, the birthplace of opera, were my favorite. Those Italians are true "zaconis" in every sense of the word and truly crazy mad!
One doesn't need to be an opera buff to enjoy this strange ride! The only downside: I wish this book had been twice as long, for I am sure he has many more tales to tell.
The behind the scenes of this book, make rock stars look tame in comparison. The level of soap opera divas (both female and male) and antics is amazing. Mansouri had the "priviledge" of touring with and overseeing many operas around the world, but his highlights of Italy, the birthplace of opera, were my favorite. Those Italians are true "zaconis" in every sense of the word and truly crazy mad!
One doesn't need to be an opera buff to enjoy this strange ride! The only downside: I wish this book had been twice as long, for I am sure he has many more tales to tell.
November 14, 2018
While I am not completely ignorant about the world of opera (thanks to my dad who was a big fan)I would not have picked up this book if a good friend hadn't recommended it and lent it to me. While not an autobiography, it does follow the author's life as an opera director for some of the best known opera houses in the world.
Lofti Mansouri has certainly worked with many of the household names of opera stars, and he has amusing and astounding anecdotes about many of them. This book is a collection of those anecdotes and makes for light, entertaining reading. You can also learn a bit about the roles of the various people who make opera happen, from the prop-master to the Board of Directors. It is a world apart though many of the tales of excess and attitude could also be found in rock-n-roll or Broadway.
Recommended for people who love opera or are curious about what goes on behind the scenes.
Lofti Mansouri has certainly worked with many of the household names of opera stars, and he has amusing and astounding anecdotes about many of them. This book is a collection of those anecdotes and makes for light, entertaining reading. You can also learn a bit about the roles of the various people who make opera happen, from the prop-master to the Board of Directors. It is a world apart though many of the tales of excess and attitude could also be found in rock-n-roll or Broadway.
Recommended for people who love opera or are curious about what goes on behind the scenes.
February 7, 2020
Anyone who knows me will wonder why in the world I am reading a book about opera? That's because it was given to me, and I must say it made me think I might want to attend an opera at least once in my life (if I had backstage passes and a VIP seat).
The stories were amusing and I learned that perhaps the hardest job in an opera company is that of the "prompter," who sits in a tiny recessed hole onstage which is only visible to the actors. It is that person's job to memorize the entire opera -- they cannot see the conductor -- and feed lines to the performers who often forget. This job seems to be especially dangerous when live animals are part of the action.
Mansouri has been directing operas since the early 1960s and has worked with many of the greats (including the ones that even I know like Beverly Sills, Pavorotti, and Joan Sutherland). Therefore, I think this would be a real hoot for people who love the genre and have actually seen all of these operas. One thing's for sure, a lot can go wrong in productions of this size, and fortunately, most of the audience -- and even the critics -- cannot tell.
The stories were amusing and I learned that perhaps the hardest job in an opera company is that of the "prompter," who sits in a tiny recessed hole onstage which is only visible to the actors. It is that person's job to memorize the entire opera -- they cannot see the conductor -- and feed lines to the performers who often forget. This job seems to be especially dangerous when live animals are part of the action.
Mansouri has been directing operas since the early 1960s and has worked with many of the greats (including the ones that even I know like Beverly Sills, Pavorotti, and Joan Sutherland). Therefore, I think this would be a real hoot for people who love the genre and have actually seen all of these operas. One thing's for sure, a lot can go wrong in productions of this size, and fortunately, most of the audience -- and even the critics -- cannot tell.
September 16, 2021
Lotfollah Mansouri nació en Irán, pero estudió psicología y canto en los Estados Unidos. Dado que no tenía verdadero talento como cantante, se convirtió primero en director de escena y después en administrador teatral. Se le atribuye el hecho de haber introducido el uso de subtítulos en las representaciones. No era un director demasiado notable, pero sabía manejar a los cantantes, por lo cual era bastante solicitado en distintos teatros. Al menos no se identificaba con la tendencia actual de ciertos directores de escena que se creen las estrellas de las representaciones. Este libro podía haber sido muy bueno, si se hubiera atenido a su título. Pero es menos un recuento de anécdotas divertidas y más una especie de ajuste de cuentas con cantantes y directores de orquesta con los cuales tuvo algunos conflictos. Al menos da una imagen interesante de lo que fue la ópera en alguna época.
May 29, 2017
Highly recommend!
December 3, 2019
A very amusing book. I don't know a lot of opera, but you don't have to to enjoy Mansouri's stories. A quick, engaging read full of humorous stories.
March 30, 2016
Truly mad. Truly fun. I fell in love with opera as a teenager, in part because of a book about Verdi I stumbled upon in my local library. I was smitten. The beautiful beard of the composer that I viewed in the plates was flawlessly white, so different from the soup-stained ones I'd seen. Clearly, this was a different world. The drama. The tales. The heartfelt music. I took out LPs from the library and followed the singers along, using librettos tucked inside with the liner notes. Verdi. Puccini. Rossini. These were my favorites. Later I added more, but those early loves marked me. They lived in my imagination until a date took me to my first opera at the Met. We sat in the highest balcony without opera glasses and although it was Wagner, who has never been one of my favorites, I was transported. Regrettably I don't recall who sang. Unforgivable I know, and I've accepted that I do not belong in the roped-off circle of opera fans. I am a person who loves some operas in my own quirky way.
Mansouri removes the glitter, or rather he blows it about a bit. I've not laughed so much in a long time. Some of the stories do seem farfetched but I have no reason to doubt them. After all, the gloves are off when egos are engaged, be they the long ones ladies prized or garden gloves with knobby fingers. Let the swatting begin. Or smooching. Or swilling.
Mansouri removes the glitter, or rather he blows it about a bit. I've not laughed so much in a long time. Some of the stories do seem farfetched but I have no reason to doubt them. After all, the gloves are off when egos are engaged, be they the long ones ladies prized or garden gloves with knobby fingers. Let the swatting begin. Or smooching. Or swilling.
February 19, 2015
This is as light, frothy, and insubstantial as The Merry Wives of Windsor.
Mansouri had a 6-decade career in opera, including stretches as the general manager of both the COC and the SFO. The stories he tells in this little book are about older productions, mostly - I think the latest is from 1990, and most are from the 60s and 70s - and give the reader a sense of what the opera world is like behind the curtain.
Mansouri had a 6-decade career in opera, including stretches as the general manager of both the COC and the SFO. The stories he tells in this little book are about older productions, mostly - I think the latest is from 1990, and most are from the 60s and 70s - and give the reader a sense of what the opera world is like behind the curtain.
May 4, 2013
I admit I'm not a true opera fan, but I have always loved stories on the antics from live theater. Lotfi Mansouri, who's career as a director of Opera productions around the world spans 50 years, provides many short, laugh out loud excerpts from that time in this book.
June 10, 2016
A cute little book full of fun stories from behind the scenes. Enjoyable even if, like me, you have only a passable interest in opera. It reminds me of when me grandparents' friends would come over and tell stories.
December 8, 2015
Definitely dishes the dirt. Some of the anecdotes seem to push the boundaries of believability but all in good fun.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews