LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - As the World
Cup nears, soccer fanatics will inevitably jink the conversation
toward the beautiful game. That includes Placido Domingo, who
explains why at 73 he can still get down on one knee to declare his
love to the soprano.
"I was a goalkeeper and I know how to throw myself onto the
floor," said the Spanish opera singer.
Even if his sporting past has served him well in his career, the
tenor-turned-baritone never expected to be where he is today,
still singing on stages all over the world.
Because of that unexpected longevity, he finds himself doing
double duty as leading man and general director for the LA
Opera, where he wraps up its 28th season this weekend as the
love-struck monk Athanael in Massenet's "Thais," the 139th role
of his career.
Around 18 years ago, Domingo took over the direction of the
Washington National Opera, and then more than a decade ago
became director of the young Los Angeles company.
"I really thought I would be singing for a very short time," he
told Reuters in an interview this week at the Dorothy Chandler
Pavilion, where he first performed in 1967. "That's the reason I
started thinking of being a director of a theater. The voice is
there, so I keep singing."
After making a full recovery from a pulmonary embolism last
year, Domingo credits his continuing career to a passion for
what he does and just plain luck that his voice is healthy.
"Many people younger than me don't sing anymore, and I am still
singing," Domingo said. "I don't know for how long. Maybe for
two weeks. In any case, my plans are for three years, at least."
FREER, LOOSER TAKE ON OPERA
Domingo's choice to go with the fledgling LA Opera in the
mid-1980s now looks like a smart one. One of his roles back then
was to cultivate relationships with Hollywood's creative
community and bring film directors in to ply their trade in
opera.
LA Opera today acts as an anchor tenant in the artistic and
urban renaissance of downtown Los Angeles along with the Los
Angeles Philharmonic next door at Walt Disney Concert Hall.
"The entire reason the company is the fourth largest in the
United States is directly attributable to his artistry, and I
think more broadly to the audience's trust in his taste of
singers, conductors, productions," said Christopher Koelsch, LA
Opera's president and chief executive officer.
Because L.A. opera-goers' local company is relatively young, they
don't necessarily have preconceived notions of how a classic opera
like Verdi's "La Traviata" should be produced.
"They want it to feel much more cutting-edge, a little bit looser, a
little bit freer," said Koelsch. "We are respectful of the tradition
but not burdened by it."
Domingo, for instance, will open LA Opera's next season in September
in the role of the father, Giorgio Germont, in "La Traviata," set in
the Roaring Twenties with Art Deco sets and directed by his wife,
Marta.
"We have to do exciting things for new people," said Domingo.
40 YEARS A FINALS FAN
Across the street, the LA Phil under the young Venezuelan superstar
conductor Gustavo Dudamel has won widespread acclaim for a trilogy
of Mozart operas, with stages built by renowned architects and
costumes by fashion designers.
But Domingo and Koelsch dismiss any notion of an operatic turf war
in downtown L.A. "I wish we would like to do things together
sometimes and I think there is the possibility," said Domingo, who
is friends with Dudamel. "We are ready and willing."
After his final performance here Saturday, Domingo goes to Europe
before making his way to Brazil for the World Cup. He will arrive in
time for the quarter-finals and is betting his beloved Spain, the
world champions, will be in contention.
Domingo's performances will include a big concert in Rio de Janeiro
two days before the final. There is little doubt where he'll be on
July 13 - Rio's Maracana Stadium.
"I was a goalkeeper and I know how to throw myself onto the
floor," said the Spanish opera singer.
