Puccini - Madama Butterfly

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon Model: 2227964

Manufacturer: Kultur Video Brand: Kulter

The three ballets on this remarkable DVD tell no stories, but they are full of human drama. In one sense, they all ell the same story--of the vitality, daring, intelligence, and emotional depth that a great dancer possesses.

Manufacturer: Halestorm Entertainment Brand: Halestorm Entertainment

When Carmine "The Beans" Pasquale (Mark DeCarlo) is nabbed by the FBI, he decides to testify against his mafia boss (Michael Kagan) and go into the Witness Relocation Program with his wife Gina (Jeanette Puhich) and son Vincent (Clayton Taylor). Now known as George, Linda and Patrick Cheeseman, the Pasquale family is sent to suburban Utah to begin their new life. But can the "Cheesemans" survive in a wolrd where everyone is Mormon, all coffee is bad and scrapbooking reigns supreme? A hilarious comedy with a knockout comedic performance by DeCarlo, MOBSTERS AND MORMONS is an "entertaining fish- out-of-water comedy" (Wade Major, BOXOFFICE Magazine)!

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon Brand: VERDI,G. Model: 2228015

Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villzon, and Thomas Hampson perform Verdi's opera with Carlo Rizzi conducting the Vienna Philaharmonic. Also included are an introduction by Villazon, behind-the-scenes, trailer for Netrebko - The Woman, The Voice, picture gallery,

Manufacturer: Zeitgeist Films

AN INTIMATE PORTRAIT OF A GROUP OF PIONEERING ARTISTS - NOW IN THEIR 70S, 80S & 90S - WHO GAVE BIRTH TO MODERN BALLET.

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon Model: 3348241

Teresa Stratas, Bernd Weikl, Astrid Varnay, and Hans Beirer star in this Richard Strauss opera with Karl Boehm conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. This filmed version of Strauss' shocker features Teresa Stratas as opera's most depraved teenager, and she's as perfect a Salome as one would ever hope to see or hear. Stratas inhabits the role, exploring the character's sensuousness as she vainly woos Jochanaan, her venomous hatred when she's rejected, the crazed look in her eyes when she demands his head--on a silver platter, no less. Such complete identification with a role, especially of a character so malignant helps make this 1974 Salome stand out among the many fine DVDs of the opera. The visceral impact of the film owes much to Götz Friedrich's direction and Gerd Staub's sets. All of the action takes place in the courtyard of Herod's palace, but Friedrich exploits the claustrophobic possibilities of limited space by his deft camera angles that follow the singers and by copious close-ups that often show details unavailable to us when we see the opera live or even in a filmed stage performance: Stratas' face and eyes, which reflect her swift mood changes, Jochanaan's face, which shows his disgust, and the corrupt visages of Herod and Herodias. The cumulative effect of such close-ups heightens tension and creates an atmosphere in which we, the viewers, are thrust into the action. It's not always a comfortable experience but it's always an engrossing one. Staub's sets and ...