Parterre Box

The publication was founded by the New Yorker James Jorden in 1993[1] during a period of under-employment as an opera director.

For this show, Jorden took on the drag persona of "La Cieca", a gossip commentator.

A highlight of the 2006 season of Unnatural Acts of Opera was the first ever podcast of Richard Wagner's four-opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen, an event Jorden termed "Götterdämmerung".

Jorden has also contributed a number of opera video clips to YouTube, concentrating on his favorite divas, including Renata Scotto, Leonie Rysanek and Dame Gwyneth Jones.

The podcasts appear to have ended in 2009 and are known to be available in various services, including iTunes and in streaming form on the parterre.com website.