Latest news with #Opera
Reuters
15 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Sinner and singer Bocelli strike up partnership for new single
June 20 (Reuters) - World number one Jannik Sinner has formed a new doubles partnership but the duo will be battling for chart success rather than Grand Slam titles after the Italian released a single with compatriot and opera tenor Andrea Bocelli on Friday. The three-time Grand Slam champion Sinner promoted the song titled 'Polvere e Gloria' or 'Dust and Glory' on Instagram. The video features footage from the pair's childhoods and more recent clips of the singer and Sinner, clutching a racket and tennis ball, in front of a piano in Bocelli's home in Tuscany. Sinner's speeches form part of the song, which is in Italian and English, with Bocelli in full flow. "Every life is a potential work of art: each of us bears the sweet responsibility of nurturing our talents in the daily acrobatics of living, pursuing our dreams while remaining steadfastly true to our values," the pair wrote on Instagram. "This duet is such a bold leap that it has ignited our passion, born of shared and unwavering desire to express our deep belief that nothing is impossible." Sinner, the U.S. Open and Australian Open champion, said he was honoured to be part of the project with Bocelli, describing the singer as a "unique and extraordinary voice" and "a flag for our country in the rest of the world". "I could never have imagined hearing my voice in one of his songs. It's extremely moving," the 23-year-old added. Sinner, who was beaten by Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in an epic French Open final earlier this month, lost in the last 16 of the Halle Open on Thursday in a blow to his preparations for Wimbledon which gets underway on June 30.
Tom's Guide
a day ago
- General
- Tom's Guide
I'm a barista who swapped an $899 espresso machine for a $149 budget one — here's why
I'm an ex-barista, so I've spent enough time making coffee for a lifetime. I cut my teeth at an independent artisanal cafe (so independent and artisanal that it was one of the many small business Covid casualties) and then suffered through some long, hard years at Starbucks (during lockdown, cry) as punishment. You think that would stop me. But I cannot be stopped. I am as unstoppable as the endless march of time. Now as a journalist, it's my mission to find the best espresso machines so I can continue drinking way too much coffee. The $149 De'Longhi Stilosa has everything I hate in an espresso machine: a flimsy plastic tamper, a flimsy plastic construction, and a flimsy plastic drip tray. I really thought I'd hate this machine. No, tell a lie, I wanted to hate it, because it was so ugly. However, when I ditched my $900 De'Longhi La Specialista Opera for the $149 De'Longhi Stilosa, I was absolutely shocked. I tested the U.K. version of the De'Longhi Stilosa. A reader pointed out recently that the U.S. model of the Stilosa comes with dual-walled portafilters. In this case, I'd recommend getting third-party single-walled portafilters to achieve the same results as me. This is the machine I use every day. I love it with all my heart, but something just doesn't feel right anymore. Maybe because it's taking up a quarter of my kitchen, and that's grown into resentment? Either way, I don't know what's next for me and my beloved La Specialista Opera. It might be the most tear-jerking goodbye of 2025. This is the Opera's contender: smaller, cheaper, and a hell of a lot uglier. I really had my doubts about the Stilosa. For starters, it feels flimsy AF and looks like someone vomited up a pile of plastic. But oh boy, can it pull a delicious espresso shot. Color me surprised. Repeat after me: I will not use pre-ground coffee... I will not use pre-ground coffee... I will not use pre-ground coffee. Now, I've said it before and I'll say it again. You have to work for good espresso on the De'Longhi Stilosa. If you just take it out of the box and get to work, you'll think I've lost my marbles. Espresso is an art as much as it's a science. And perfect espresso needs two things: a good grinder, and an even better barista. I used both the Eureka Mignon Specialita ($649) and the Comandante C40 MK4 (from ~$282) with the De'Longhi Stilosa. If budget's a concern, you might be able to grab the Baratza Encore ESP or the 1ZPresso J-Ultra — both $199 — instead. However, a good grinder is a non-negotiable. The only reason why the Stilosa managed to match the La Specialista Opera is because of the brilliant grinders I used. If you buy pre-ground beans or have a blade grinder, you will never be able to achieve these results. Repeat after me: I will not use pre-ground coffee... I will not use pre-ground coffee... I will not use pre-ground coffee. Okay, great! This is a picture of the best espresso shot I pulled on the Stilosa, using artisanal, locally-roasted specialty beans and the Comandante C40 MK4 grinder. As I'm sure you're aware by now, achieving an espresso shot like this is only possible because of a premium grinder and specialty beans. With this extra effort, there's no need to spend $$$ on an espresso machine. You'll need to look for the following specs: While the De'Longhi Stilosa doesn't have a PID (which is a temperature controller built-in to the machine to prevent burning and weak espresso), it is literally $149. At this price point, you can't really ask for much more. It's worth noting that other home baristas have successfully modded the Stilosa with PID controllers, so not all is lost. As the De'Longhi Stilosa I tested has both 9-bar pressure and single-walled portafilters, I was able to pull technically perfect espresso. If you follow my advice, there's no reason why you wouldn't be able to achieve this too. In terms of espresso brewing? I couldn't believe my luck. The Stilosa is $759 cheaper than my La Specialista Opera, but pulls very similar shots. That's a monumental saving. I won't lie to you, when I first picked up the De'Longhi Stilosa, I physically grimaced. I thought there's no way this flimsy plastic hunk of junk can ever be good. But oh boy, did it prove me wrong. I already chatted about all the reasons why the De'Longhi Stilosa proved me wrong in a different article, but I'll go through them again briefly here. Good espresso machines need some weight to them. Even compact machines have boilers crammed inside their tiny size, so when I picked up the Stilosa, I was immediately suspicious. I doubted its ability to heat water, let alone pull espresso. But I was wrong. The Stilosa crams an impressive 9-bar pressure system and a steel boiler inside its 8-inch size. The sacrifices come in its all-plastic (ugly) construction, flimsy group handle, and pathetic tamper. These are all fixable problems though. The inherent espresso-making ability of the machine? Off-the-charts good. I'll be the first person to admit that a lot of budget espresso machines are very questionable. But not the De'Longhi Stilosa. With the extra work I discussed earlier, I was able to make $500-machine worthy espresso on the $149 Stilosa. However, without the effort, the espresso will most definitely taste like it was made on a cheap machine. So, if the cheap espresso machine has the following things: 9-bar pressure, single-walled portafilter baskets, a shower screen with even water distribution, and (maybe) a PID controller, then there's nothing stopping it performing like a premium model. With the right tools, coffee, and barista, of course. Although I was really impressed by the Stilosa for the price, I'm not really ready to give up my La Specialista Opera yet. (I actually kind of regret getting the Opera and really want a Breville Bambino Plus, but that's another story.) Steaming milk on the Stilosa requires a little more effort than other machines, because the steam wand can be a little overexcited. Take a look at the latte I made with the Stilosa. This is after 3 1/2 years as a barista, bear in mind. My latte art could still do with some work (I'm yet to master the tulip), but I think a more inexperienced barista might need a little more time to get adjusted to the Stilosa's overexcited steam wand. On top of that, if you're a barista who just wants coffee and doesn't want to spend lots of time and mental effort making that coffee? Then I think the Stilosa might not be for you. I'd recommend something like the De'Longhi Rivelia in that case, but it'll cost you — $1,499. I knew this already, but swapping my La Specialista Opera for the Stilosa reaffirmed my belief that good coffee needs one thing: a good barista who knows what they're doing. Yes, you can spend $$$ (more like $$$$$$...) on a Bianca Lelit ($2,999) or a La Marzocco Linea Mini ($6,300), but if you don't have the knowledge? Your coffee won't taste great. I recommend spending time learning about coffee — what types of beans you like, why you need a great grinder, how to set up a shot — before spending a month's wages on a machine. Instead, I'd recommend getting the Stilosa and learning on a cheap machine. Then, once you've got the skill? By all means, dig into a pricier machine — or just keep your money and continue slaying on the Stilosa.
Tom's Guide
5 days ago
- General
- Tom's Guide
I fell for the bean-to-cup hype — here's the espresso machine I wish I'd bought, and why
The best espresso machines come in all shapes and sizes. Remarkably, my espresso machine — the De'Longhi La Specialista Opera — is Tom's Guide's number one espresso machine. It's the best overall — an almighty title, worthy of a fantastic, impeccable coffee machine. The La Specialista Opera is all of those things — fantastic, impeccable, the best — but even though these accolades are true and correct, I just don't think it's the machine for me anymore. Yes, it makes delicious coffee, and yes, it looks like an absolute treat. However, I think I jumped the gun and got the machine I was most excited about, rather than the one that suited me the best. I'll discuss why and what I wish I'd gotten instead: a hint, it includes a Breville espresso machine, because, of course, it does. I know, how typical of me. I do love my De'Longhi, but my heart absolutely yearns for a Breville Bambino Plus. Why, you ask? Because, for starters, it's just 7 inches wide compared to my La Specialista Opera's 14, and 11 pounds to the Opera's 28 pounds. I have a small kitchen, and I had to buy a freestanding kitchen unit, which cost me approximately $130. If I'd just gotten the Bambino Plus, I would've saved that extra dough. The Bambino Plus is the espresso machine I wish I'd bought. It's $400 cheaper than the Opera, too, but there's a catch — it doesn't have a grinder. However, it's a space-saving monster, at just 7 inches wide. The size isn't the only reason I wish I'd bought the Bambino Plus, though. Although the La Specialista Opera's built-in grinder is fine, it's not as good as a standalone grinder, and it never will be. There's a reason the best coffee grinders are just grinders, and not grinders inside other things, because something trying to do one thing is better than something else trying to do two things at once. This is the grinder I would recommend over my built-in one. Yes, the Comandante C40 MK4 is expensive. However, it comes with a "lifetime" warranty, so it might just be the last grinder I ever buy. It also has excellent uniformity and low retention, features baristas look for. Recently, I've been craving having to work for my coffee. When I grind beans by hand, I feel like I've earned my beverage. No? Just me. There are so many reasons why the Comandante C40 MK4 is a perfect coffee grinder. It's stylish, features martensitic stainless steel conical burrs (the same material used in surgical instruments), and grinds beans like nothing else. With the $400 savings on the smaller, cheaper Bambino Plus, I'd get this grinder. As the Breville Bambino Plus is $499 and the Comandante C40 MK4 is $282, that means I still have $118 left to play with. I would either buy lots of specialty coffee beans (or get a bean subscription) or I'd get some accessories. Realistically, I'd probably get the $49 Wacaco Exagram Pro scale to make sure I'm extracting espresso at the perfect 1:2 ratio and in the golden window of extraction, 25-28 seconds. It's the best coffee scale, in terms of value. Because the De'Longhi La Specialista Opera has a smart tamping system that tamps internally, it's great for a mess-free coffee routine. However, I'd happily clean up extra mess for better-tasting coffee. As a result, I'd probably get the Normcore tamper, $49 at Amazon, which has a spring that automatically applies pressure. After all that, I've still got $20 left — just enough to get a bag of nice specialty coffee to hand-grind in my Comandante C40 MK4, and pull perfect espresso in my Breville Bambino Plus. Don't get me wrong. The De'Longhi La Specialista Opera is a fantastic espresso machine, and it deserves its title as the best overall machine. However, it's probably not the right one for me. I have a really small kitchen, so I should've gotten a smaller setup. On top of that, I am definitely a DIY-style barista, so I want to be innately involved with every part of the espresso brewing routine. If you want a quick, reliable and high-quality machine, then the La Specialista Opera is for you. However, if you need to save space and you want to grind beans by hand, then the Bambino Plus + C40 MK4 setup is more your style. (And mine!)
San Francisco Chronicle
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Review: San Francisco Opera's ‘Idomeneo' dazzles with powerful voices and striking visuals
Mozart's 'Idomeneo' will never be the composer's most popular work, but it is a great opera, full of fire and vivid characterizations. Merely 24 years old when he wrote the score, Mozart poured everything he had into 'Idomeneo,' and San Francisco Opera's excellent new production, which opened on Saturday, June 14, at the War Memorial Opera House, showed the work's dramatic power and musical beauty thanks to a fully committed cast. This is the kind of opera that Mozart dreamed of making, filled with first-rank singers down to the secondary roles. But after its Munich premiere in 1781, 'Idomeneo' had only one subsequent private performance in Vienna. It wasn't until the 20th century that the work entered the standard repertory, thanks in no small part to San Francisco Opera's groundbreaking 1977 production. 'Idomeneo' takes up the story of the titular king of Crete's return from the Trojan War. Beset by storms, he offers a rash vow to the god Neptune to sacrifice the first person he sees on shore if he and his crew should arrive safely home. Naturally, Idomeneo is greeted by his son Idamante. The prince is in love with Ilia, a captured Trojan princess, and she responds to his ardent wooing. But the princess Elettra expects to marry Idamante and is furious to discover he's considering an alliance with his enemy. Though shorn of its ballet and several arias, as is customary in modern presentations, this is a big show that the Opera is staging. Australian director Lindy Hume's production relies for its sense of scale on cinematographer Catherine Pettman's dramatic filmed images of the Tasmanian coastline. The visuals are artfully projected onto Michael Yeargan's spare set by projection designer David Bergman. Following this prompt, costume designer Anna Cordingley has buttressed the shoulders of the king's royal mantle with feathers, possibly a reference to the Palawa/Pakana first people of Tasmania, to whom the production team pays respect in the program book. Otherwise, the costuming is modern dress and predominantly black and gray, effectively showcased by Verity Hampson's original lighting, revived for these performances by Justin A. Partier. Hume's direction focuses on the characters' emotions and interrelationships, and she pulls strong acting performances from all of her seasoned principal singers. Tenor Matthew Polenzani conveyed the king's anguish and regret in a manner that felt authentic and lived. He's completely comfortable with the role's vocal demands, and if his florid runs in the centerpiece aria 'Fuor del mar' (Saved from the sea) were smudged, that's partly because Mozart unkindly put most of them in the singer's midrange. Projecting a firm sound out into the War Memorial auditorium took precedence. On Saturday, we learned from Opera General Director Matthew Shilvock that mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack, in the role of Idamante, performed a little bit under the weather, but I doubt the audience would have known without the announcement. She may have felt that her energy was down, but even at 90%, she has more than enough power and vocal agility to put over her part. In dramatic terms, she was a powerful presence, especially in her recitatives and her entrance aria, 'Non ho colpa' (I'm not guilty). But the evening's singing laurels went to Ying Fang as Ilia and Elza van den Heever as Elettra. In a part stuffed with gorgeous melodies designed to show off a lyric soprano, Fang made an indelible impression, her voice in pristine condition, beautiful and well controlled. In a much broader role, van den Heever commanded the stage in her three highly contrasting arias. Hers is a huge voice, but she brought delicacy and warmth to her seductive Act 2 'Idol mio' (My dearest). Then she showed off her Straussian power by exploding from silence into her rafter-shaking final aria, rushing out to stunned applause from the audience. Out of a number of small roles, tenor Alek Shrader as the king's advisor, Arbace, must be mentioned. Hume has him deliver one of the two arias Mozart wrote for the character, and the opportunity paid off, as Shrader sang with the confidence and tonal sweetness for which he has been noted. John Keene's chorus has a lot of work in the show and performed brilliantly. Music Director Eun Sun Kim, for whom there are no superlatives left, led a tautly dramatic performance from the pit. In Mozart's expansive score, the orchestra has several moments to shine, and these musicians did.
Fashion Network
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Fashion Network
Zegna opens an oasis with stellar show inside Dubai Opera
Zegna staged its first-ever runway show outside of Italy on Wednesday, and its choice of Dubai said a huge amount about the ambitions of the brand – and of fashion - for the future. Presented inside the Dubai Opera, the collection was the latest expression of subtle and subversive chic by the house's creative director Alessandro Sartori. Staged on a sandy twisting runway beneath palms and local trees and foliage, in the bowls of the Opera, a shiny steel structure built between the world's tallest building, the Burj El Khalifa, and Dubai Mall, where Zegna have their largest flagship in the world. Other brands may be obsessed with growing their e-commerce business, but Zegna is very much into expanding its retail footprint in the region. With four stores already in Dubai, and a half-dozen opening in the next year in Saudi and other Gulf states. Most of the audience – that included 150 VICs and Zegna ambassador Mads Mikkelsen – were dressed in head-to-toe Zegna. We counted over 100 pairs of Zegna's iconic Triple X sneakers in the front row. Few designers have redefined the male post pandemic wardrobe more than Sartori, whose blend of sustainable and recycled fabrics, racy deconstruction and forgiving silhouettes have made him one of the most influential menswear designers in fashion today. Zegna was once the purveyor of the defining high-end suit for young executives and thrusting decision makers. It still dresses them today, but with a far more perceptive, understated and insouciant style. For more fun moments, Sartori opened with a series of pajama suits in one-inch-wide vertical stripes in light silk voile. Made with the very same fabric as interior lining, the silk scrunched slightly around the torso with raffish panache. Ale, as all his pals call him, also experimented with paper thread, combining with leather to invent remarkable suede knit cardigans and jerkins. True menswear couture. Other brilliant new fabrics included a tweed silk, with an uncanny hand from its irregular yarn, used in a great check suit; and a series of cool surgeons smocks in jacquard linen/wool, sanded hemp or second skin suede. Over half the collection featured leather. Detailing included leather buttons, suede pocket trim, reverse leather jacket collars, cardigan crocodile piping. Whole looks included second-skin suede dusters or perforated leather gilets, to hyper malleable moccasins. Built in what Italians called Panama construction where they can almost be rolled up like socks. 'It's about developing hybrid fabrics to build uncomplicated clothes in terms of attitude. Layering, matching different components and collecting to create your very own wardrobe,' explained Sartori, in a pre-show preview. His color palette ranged from Bordeaux and burgundy, to rope, cognac, liquorice or spicy checks. From desert hues to a series of greens that riffed on the verdant hills of Piedmont, where founder Ermenegildo first dreamed of an Oasi Zegna. Back in 1910, he literally bought a mountain side, 30 times the size of Central Park or 12 as large as the Bois de Boulogne, where the brand would eventually plant over 500,000 trees. Referenced in a series that included a must-have acid green four-pocket tailored jacket. Or the latest versions – in linen, tech-y silk, denim or crocodile – of the Conte jacket, the signature garment of Ermenegildo, a blazer cut with high Nehru collar. Post-show, guests could stroll into Villa Zegna, an elegant installation and storytelling of the brand's origins and DNA inside the opera house, that included Ermenegildo's desk, reading glasses, carved leather chair and silk trimmed Homburg hat. The third iteration of Villa Zegna – following Shanghai and New York – this unique gentleman's pop-up club lasts one week in Dubai. Containing a rich selection of Zegna fashion, where a select few VICs can order, or have made bespoke from scratch, the entire wardrobe. Including another outstanding Conte jacket made in soft violet crocodile. Guests could also experience Zegna's latest cologne, also named Il Conte. Inspired by a visit to Zegna's key plant in Trivero, in the Piedmontese foothills of the Alps. It mixes the factory's smell of wet wool with Tahitian vanilla, leather, patchouli and benzoin resin. Produced in a limited-edition of just 300 flacons made of hand-blown Murano glass finished with a wooden cap and family crest. Like the collection, a savvy display of the Italian art de vivre, lifestyle and special sense of tradition. Though the focus this Wednesday was on the catwalk show, which opened with a special composition by James Blake, playing solo on a grand piano, before segueing into a soundtrack of lush orchestration - a blend of Polish composer Abel Korzeniowski's soundtrack from "Dance for Me Wallis" and Max Richter's "On the Nature of Daylight." All told, the latest smart fashion statement by Sartori, one of fashion's most successful commercial designers, as well as a pathbreaking talent. During a tricky moment for high fashion, the Ermenegildo Zegna Group – which also includes Tom Ford and Thom Browne – scored profits of €184 million, and earned on a 2% rise in revenues to €1.945 billion in 2025, where Zegna accounts for 69% of revenues, and 85% of profits. In a word, the most successful brand pivot in menswear today in the past half-decade. All unveiled in Zegna's latest oasis – or Oasi.
