On Christmas Eve nine years ago, Gian Carlo Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors had its premiere on NBC television, has been a seasonal fixture ever since. Last week another Christmas opera, Golden Child, was displayed on NBC's Hallmark Hall of Fame. Composed by Philip Bezanson with a libretto by Paul Engle, the new work sounded a lot like Menotti gone western—and gone weak. The music kept attempting to soar melodically, but kept being dashed to the ground again by its own heaviness. Still, the score had its stirring, lyrical moments, and Golden...
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