© Glyndebourne Productions Ltd. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith Trigger warning: Mozart aficionados, look away now. One might think Wolfgang Amadeus to be somewhat overrated, and the fact that he was hugely prolific, widely acknowledged to be a prodigy and is almost globally asserted to have been a genius, does little by way of endearing his music to my ear. I {…}
The 2024 Glyndebourne Festival has been announced celebrating its 90th season. The season will open with a new production of Bizet’s “Carmen,” directed by Diane Paulus in her Glyndebourne directorial debut. Music Director Robin Ticciati and conductor Anja Bihlmaier will share conducting duties with two casts. The first cast will include mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb in the role of Carmen and {…}
Photo Credit: Richard Hubert Smith Glyndebourne has added an extra performance of Handel’s “Semele” to the Festival 2023 schedule. In response to the high demand for tickets, the company’s new production of “Semele” will have an added performance on August 21. Adele Thomas directs the debut performance of “Semele” starring soprano Joélle Harvey, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnston, and tenor Stuart Jackson. {…}
A number of opera houses in the United Kingdom have released a joint statement calling for the Arts Council England (ACE) to develop an opera strategy, in conversations with audiences and colleagues across the industry. The statement said, “The boards of the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne Opera, Opera North, the English National Opera, English Touring Opera, and Welsh National Opera are {…}
Photo credit: © Glyndebourne Productions Ltd. “La bohème”, as the archetypal verismo opera, tends to resist stagings that take it much beyond the confines of nineteenth-century Paris, and indeed non-naturalistic approaches to the work. (Audiences tend to resist them too.) The two most successful in London recently have been John Copley’s recently retired version at the Royal Opera House – {…}
UPDATE: This article, originally published on March 9, 2022, has been updated to include the artists performing. The Glyndebourne Festival will put on a charity concert to support those affected by the war in Ukraine. The showcase, which will take place on April 3 at 3 p.m. in the Glyndebourne auditorium, will feature Glyndebourne Festival artists along with the festival’s {…}
The Glyndebourne Festival has announced a revised 2021 season that will run from May 20 to August 29. “Kát’a Kabanová” will open the festival in a new production by Damiano Michieletto. The cast will include Kateřina Knĕžíková, Aigul Akhmetshina, Katarina Dalayman, Nicky Spence, Alexander Vassiliev, David Butt Philip, and Thomas Atkins. Performance Dates: May 29-June 19, 2021 Giancarlo Andretta conducts Mariame Clément’s production of Rossini’s {…}
(Credit: Henry Fair) Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal has announced the appointment of Venezuelan conductor Rafael Payare its new Music Director. Payare will start his five-year tenure during the 2022-23 season. The Venezuelan conductor will replace the famed conductor Kent Nagano, who has held the position since 2006. Payare graduated from the famous musical education program “El Sistema.” He won the {…}
(Credit: Frances Marshall) “At Home With… ” is a brand new series collaboration between OperaWire and photographer Frances Marshall of Marshall Light Studio, combining original photography with insightful interviews. In this first edition, OperaWire spoke with singer, recording artist, television host, and ambassador of the arts, Danielle de Niese. De Niese lives in the main house at Glyndebourne—home of the {…}
(Credit: Trond Gudevolt) The Staatsoper unter der Linden has announced that coloratura soprano Caroline Wettergreen will take over the role of Die Königin der Nacht in Mozart and Schikaneder’s “Die Zauberflöte” for the performances on Dec. 27, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. CET, and Jan. 10, 2021. Wettergreen will replace Antonina Vesenina and join a cast that includes René Pape in {…}
(Credits: Dragana Branković/Katarina Bradić) Known for her deep and diverse vocal versatility and also theatrical prowess, Katarina Bradić swiftly conquered the major European opera stages—Teatro Real, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Staatsoper unter der Linden, Komische Oper Berlin, Theater Basel, Bolshoi Theater, Theater an der Wien, Den Norske Opera, Opernhaus Zürich, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Bayerische Staatsoper, La Monnaie, De Nationale Opera {…}