Shirley Verrett Movies
Mezzo-soprano Metropolitan Opera star, onscreen in Macbeth (1987). ~ All Movie Guide
Featuring opera legends Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras, this production includes selections from La Boheme, Carmen, La Traviata, Madam Butterfly, The Barber of Seville, and Turandot, among others. Noted sopranos Raina Kabaivanska and Janet Baker also make appearances, as well as Cecilia Gasdia, Nicola Martinucci, Eva Marton, and Neil Shicoff.
~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
Baldo Podic conducts The Philharmonic Orchestra of Russe in this performance from Siena's Teatro Comunale dei Rinnovati starring Shirley Verrett and staged to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Pietro Mascagni's popular one-act opera. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shirley Verrett, Krystian Johannson, (more)
- 1989
Placido Domingo and friends performed at the 1989 Unesco benefit in Paris. Arias and ensembles from Verdi and Puccini. ~ All Movie Guide
Giacomo Meyerbeer's celebrated opera L'Africaine comes to life on-stage in this performance by the chorus, ballet, and orchestra of the San Francisco Opera. Swelling with French vocals, the story follows a Portuguese explorer to Africa, where he complicates his life with his love interest in the African queen. The entanglement in a love triangle permeates the explorer's excursion. DVD is subtitled in English. ~ Sarah Sloboda, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Plácido Domingo, Shirley Verrett, (more)
An international collection of well-known directors contributed to this compilation film, each fashioning a short film inspired by an aria from a famous opera. The approaches vary broadly, from the playful abstraction of Jean-Luc Godard's segment, which illustrates Armide with exercising body-builders, to the more literal approach of Franc Roddam, who transports Tristan und Isolde's story to modern-day Las Vegas. A particular stand-out is Julian Temple's take on Rigoletto, which recasts Verdi as the accompaniment to a contemporary Southern California sex farce. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Theresa Russell, Nicola Swain, (more)
- 1987
This production of Giuseppi Verdi's opera based on Macbeth, the famed play by William Shakespeare, is a musical succès d'estime but falls short in the cinematic arena. Shirley Verrett stars as the murderous and ambitious Lady Macbeth, Leo Nucci co-stars as her similarly ambitious but slightly more scrupulous husband, who has the good grace to feel some horror at his deeds before he does them. The entire opera was filmed inside a Belgian castle, and some of the smaller parts are obviously lip-synched to pre-recorded music. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leo Nucci, Shirley Verrett, (more)
This production of the opera Samson et Dalila was staged originally in San Francisco. Plácido Domingo and Shirley Verrett star as the title duo. The storyline follows the Biblical tale of the conflict between the Philistines and the Hebrews and shows how Dalila's influence brought about the end of Samson. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
In ancient Palestine, the Hebrews live as slaves under the Philistines. Samson, a Hebrew of enormous strength, appears and leads a revolt and kills the Philistine leader Abimelech after Abimelech tries to force the Hebrews to worship Dagon, a Philistine god. After his success, the beautiful, seductive Philistine Dalila entreats Samson to come to her that night, intending to trick him and learn the secret of his unnatural strength. Samson goes to Dalila and falls prey to her trickery, after which he is captured, blinded and led away. The Hebrews are once again in the power of the Philistines due to Samson's weakness with Dalila, and the once-mighty Samson is brought into a Philistine temple. There, he is ordered to pray to Dagon. Samson seems to acquiesce, but as he is led to the altar, he prays that his God will restore his strength for one last victory. His prayer is granted, and Samson smashes the columns that support the stone temple, bringing destruction to the temple and death to both his oppressors and himself. Among the many popular arias from this work are "Printemps qui commence," "Israël! romps ta chaîne" and "Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix." ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- 1978
A video biography that follows the black diva throughout a year. Verrett is seen in performance excerpts of roles that she made her own, including Iphigenie, Tosca, Dalila and Carmen. She also sings blues songs and spirituals, and discusses her religious background and her experiences as a black opera singer. ~ All Movie Guide
