Since opening night of the Metropolitan Opera's production of Don Pasquale, tenor Javier Camarena had felt mounting pressure to execute an exceptionally rare act at the venerable house: an encore.
During the Saturday, March 12 matinee performance, the Mexican tenor gave in, delighting audiences with a repeat of his Act II virtuoso aria, “Povero Ernesto," which he finished with a ringing high D-Flat, twice. (Listen to the audio of his encore below).
Camarena had discussed the possibility of performing the encore prior to the performance with both conductor Maurizio Benini and the Met’s general manager Peter Gelb. However, the decision wasn't final until, “When I came out running,” Camarena said backstage, following the performance. His voice felt steady, and he felt a strong connection with the enthusiastic audience. “I have a few seconds to really consider, but I was sensing the audience right from the beginning. I was waiting for the response from the public,” he said.
Banned at one time at the Met — programs in the 1920s stated “Positively no encores allowed” — encores are still unusual occurrences in the house. Since 1942, only Luciano Pavarotti, Juan Diego Flórez and Camarena have sung them. The last time an encore was performed at the Met was during the spring 2014 run of Rossini’s La Cenerentola, in which Camarena and Flórez each sung an encore in two performances. The last time an encore was captured on a live Saturday broadcast was in a 2012 performance of L’Elisir d’Amore with Flórez.
Though the orchestra had been primed on Saturday, the encore did seem to catch cast member Ambrogio Maestri, performing the title role, off guard. As Camarena jogged back on stage, Maestri opened a pair of curtains in anticipation of his entrance and then, realizing the situation, quickly shut them. When the repeat performance ended, Maestri finally walked on stage, tacking on his own applause for his colleague.
Camarena will be singing the role of Ernesto in two more performances of Don Pasquale, on March 15 and 18, fully understanding that future audiences may come expecting him to deliver a bit extra.
“What I love is that people come excited,” he said. “At the end, this is the most important thing for me, that people really get into it and become really really excited about what is happening on stage.”
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@LAPhil is in New York City, performing the second of two concerts at Lincoln Center tonight.
Members of our bass section find a warm up space as the stage is set for rehearsal @LincolnCenter#DavidGeffenHall🎶 pic.twitter.com/fv4Ua3ee8M
— LA Phil (@LAPhil) March 13, 2016
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