There was talk tonight in the War Memorial about Placido Domingo's age,
but what came through from his performance, convincingly, is that we live
in the Age of Domingo, we have for the past 30 years, and still do.  At the
end of the evening, as Otello died, Domingo once again stood larger than
life, *in the present* -- with that clean, powerful, unique voice; intense,
gripping acting; and the commanding and yet unselfish, unpretentious
presence, charisma and irresistible emotional appeal.  It's still all
there, and he is still towering over just about everybody in all opera.

Domingo is only 59, but tonight, at the San Francisco Opera's "Viva
Domingo" benefit tribute of single acts from three different operas, he
looked considerably older, visibly tired, apparently even walking with
difficulty.

When he first sang, in Act II of "Fedora," there were some signs of his
physical condition in the voice:  a bit of effort, a hint of roughness,
and cautiousness -- exactly the things you might hear in performances by
others, but not Domingo.

And then, in a few minutes, the voice cleared up, the years fell away,
his power returned, both in "Fedora" (for an intense, suspenseful
confrontation) and in Act II of "Samson et Dalila." And then, the crowning
glory of the evening, the "Otello" finale, leaving the audience in stunned
silence and tears -- this was Domingo of 10 or 20 years ago, and better
than in his local debut, in that special but "too youthful" 1969 "Boheme."

Not judging by the voice, but by his appearance and punishing schedule,
chances are that this was a farewell concert to the city where he has
always been among the best-loved singers.  His 1983 cross-country flight
(the day after he returned to New York from Barcelona) will forever remain
in the memory of the 20,000 people who profess to have been in the
3,000-seat theater that night.  Well, I was *really* there and the 2 a.m.
finale -- while obviously having a special atmosphere -- wasn't more moving
and memorable than tonight's.

Casting for the gala was exactly right, offering Domingo fine
"accompaniment," but no contest from Elizabeth Whitehouse's Fedora
(excellent stage presence, limited voice), Marina Domashenko's preening
Dalila (a big voice, but uninteresting in the long run), and Carol Vaness'
slightly pinched but very fine Desdemona.

Donald Runnicles was driving the orchestra with his usual intensity, but
there was a slight variance at times (especially in "Fedora") between the
sound from the stage and the music from the pit.  The orchestra may well
labored under the triple jeopardy of coming in from "off season," not
having enough rehearsal time for this one-night-only event, and perhaps
being tired from the intense rehearsal schedule for the summer season
that opens tomorrow with "Don Giovanni," and continues with "The Rake's
Progress" and "Parsifal." While Runnicles and the orchestra were clearly
below their distinguished par, switching from "Parsifal" orchestral
rehearsals to a quick performance of Giordano, Saint-Saens and Verdi
could have resulted in something considerably worse.

And of course, in the end, nothing mattered, but Otello's heart-rending,
devastating tragedy.  "Oh!  Gloria!  Otello fu." Domingo *is*.  Glory and
long life to him.

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