With South African soprano Pretty Yende as Violetta, American tenor Jonathan Tetelman as Alfredo, and Italian baritone Simone Piazolla as Giorgio Germont, all three making their company debuts, this new production of Verdi’s La Traviata capped off an exciting Fall season of San Francisco Opera’s Centennial year. Not only was the singing of the three principals in La Traviata sensational, the new production by director Shawna Lucey, the first to be built by the Company in 35 years, was impeccably designed and executed. Add in the acutely sensitive conducting of Music Director Eun Sun Kim and you have a La Traviata for the ages. -more-

These are the approximate words of my father when joking of calamity: "If everyone around you is panic-stricken, believing disaster is happening, and freaking out, and you're not, there is probably something wrong with you." (I can't reproduce his exact words--I have only a vague memory.) Of course, there are many men and many women who would never admit to being afraid. Yet all are at some point. But we should remember, a hard situation is very frequently not about us. -more-

For the third straight year the United States has experienced over 600 mass shootings in which four or more people, other than the attacker, were shot. Just recently, five people were killed in a mass shooting at Club Q nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colo.; six were killed at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Va.; four more were killed at the University of Idaho; and three were killed and two others wounded at the University of Virginia. This is intolerable. -more-

Worth Noting:

I think I caught every announcement and change, however, the long holiday weekend means some meeting postings will not appear until Monday. Check https://berkeleyca.gov/ for meetings posted on short notice. The Council will be approving adjustments to the AAO (Annual Appropriations Ordinance – City Budget) on December 13. Expect meetings of the Budget Committee to be posted prior to December 13. -more-

So much happened this last week it is hard to know where to begin. And much of it has been in the news already. Here is how the Tuesday evening, November 15, 2022 Berkeley City Council meeting rolled out:

Jennifer Louis’s appointment as Berkeley Police Chief was supposed to slide through on consent, with 21 other items and likely no comment from the council other than congratulations, but the entirety of the appointment broke open Monday afternoon when Nathan Mizell, vice-chair of the Police Accountability Board (PAB) ,sent out a press release published in the Planet and elsewhere. A dump of derogatory, racist texts alluding to arrest quotas sent by Berkeley police officers, which had been released by whistleblower Corey Shedoudy, a former Berkeley police officer who was fired earlier in the year, started circulating in emails on Tuesday morning. -more-

. FIFA, the sponsoring agency for world soccer, has a long history of corruption. Inexplicably, they chose Qatar to host the world soccer games which should have been automatically disqualified because of its soaring high temperatures. This is yet another chapter illustrating how one nation with incredible wealth could mistreat migrant workers with such callousness and inhumanity. -more-

Many people, sometimes without realizing it, have lives filled with work. Brushing and flossing your teeth is work. Cleaning the kitchen is work. Checking the oil on one's car is work. In my case, my life is filled with various kinds of work. The effort to earn money at writing involves a lot. Not only is there the writing itself; I must keep track of where pieces are sent; I must read and understand any feedback** from editors explaining a rejection and benefiting from this if possible; I must analyze style and find ways to improve both style and content; and there is more--much more. And let's not forget the reality that almost any writer is competing with millions of Americans who lost their jobs to the pandemic and who've decided to become writers, because they now have the time. More than ever, my endeavor of writing feels like work. And a related activity is the upkeep of my computer. It is aged, and when new it was a cheapie. -more-

Two women, who are elected office holders, have shown outstanding integrity, superior intelligence, deep compassion for the less fortunate, and sincere dedication to good governance. They could deliver a restorative redemption team for our torn and tattered democracy, if elected to the White House in 2024. And, they both have the same first name, Elizabeth! While they differ markedly on many policy issues, Elizabeth Warren and Liz Cheney both have shown the capacity and ability to find common objectives and join forces with adversaries to accomplish effective policies. If Elizabeth and Liz were a governing team, their presence would bridge the political divide that is tearing our country asunder. -more-

Cryptocurrency Truancy

Could the collapse of FTX, the cryptocurrency giant, have been prevented? I have no idea but I do feel the collapse could have been predicted.

In a case of what seems like a public predestination of failure, the news accounts reveal that a major "responsible party" was FTX's controller—whose name happens to be Sam Banker-Fried. That now seems like an obvious sign of trouble. Who would trust their retirement income to a fellow named "Banker-Fried"?

Once thing's for sure: In the aftermath of the disaster that brought down FTX, this is one banker who's certainly been fried. -more-

Worth Noting:

Monday is absolutely packed with meetings.

The big meeting on Monday is the special City Council meeting at 5 pm with one agenda item – Fair Workweek. Recall that Taplin, Kesarwani, Droste and Wengraf filibustered the passage of the Fair Workweek on November 3, by running out the clock and declining to extend the council meeting to vote on the Fair Workweek ordinance. Fair Workweek applies to workers earning less than twice the minimum wage. See Activist’s Diary for full description. https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2022-11-06/article/50047?headline=A-Berkeley-Activist-s-Diary-Week-Ending-November-6-2022--Kelly-Hammargren

The Disaster and Fire Safety Commission recommendation for control of vegetation in fire zones with Measure FF funds is up against the City Manager companion report from Chief Sprague to resubmit a year from now at the Public Safety Committee at 10:30 am.

The Civic Center meeting is at noon.

The Agenda Committee at 2:30 pm covers the council draft agenda for December 6.

After the unraveling of the appointment of the police chief last week, the Police Accountability Board meeting at 3 pm is worth considering.

Unless you are an artist or festival organizer skip the 2 pm Civic Arts Commission subcommittee meeting.

Tuesday the Land use Committee at 9:30 am is an amendment to the COVID eviction moratorium. Property owners with rentals and tenants should take a close look at the amendment.

The November 29 council agenda is available for comment. Redesign of Adeline at Ashby BART is item 15.

Happy Thanksgiving, refresh, rejuvenate and reconnect!

Monday, November 21, 2022 -more-

Right from the outset, indeed, beginning with the overture, this new production of Orfeo ed Euridice, staged by Matthew Ozawa and choreographed by Rena Butler, strikes boldly at the heart of this drama — the grief of Orpheus at losing his Eurydice to a deadly snakebite on their wedding day. As acclaimed early music interpreter Peter Whelan conducts Gluck’s vigorous overture, dancers in flowing costumes perform harrowing break-dances emphasising the writhing, tortured expressions of grief as couples embrace then are violently separated. Included among the break- dancers is none other than Polish countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński, himself an accomplished break-dancer who sings the role of Orpheus in this production. As that rare phenomenon a distinguished opera singer who is also a remarkable break-dancer, Jakub Józef Orliński has been the subject of feature articles in the New York Times, New Yorker and Polish Vogue. -more-