Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week, audiences will get to hear several world premieres, rarities, and several complete opera recordings. Giacomo Puccini: Manon Lescaut C Major releases Puccinios’ breakthrough opera with a cast that includes Liudmyla Monastyrska, David Bizic, Gregory Kunde, and Carlos Chausson. The Gran Teatre {…}
The Semperoper Dresden has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Arrigo Boito’s “Mefistofele” is conducted by Andrea Battistoni and directed by Eva-Maria Höckmayr. The production will star Krzysztof Bączyk, Bekhzod Davronov, Marjukka Tepponen, and Martina Gedeck. Performance Dates: Sept. 28-Oct. 24, 2024 Richard Strauss’s “Intermezzo” will be conducted by Patrick Hahn and directed by Axel Ranisch. The cast will include Maria {…}
The Festival Verdi is set to present a recital featuring Gregory Kunde and Francesca Dotto on Oct. 11, 2023. The program will be held at the Teatro Girolamo Magnani di Fidenza and will include excerpts from “Macbeth,” “La Traviata,” “I Vespri Siciliani,” “Luisa Miller,” “Ernani,” “La Forza del Destino,” and “Otello.” There will also be six romances from 1846. The {…}
Modena’s Teatro Comunale Pavarotti-Freni has announced its 2023-24 season. Opera The season opens with Giordano’s “Fedora” in a new production by Pier Luigi Pizzi. Aldo Sisillo conducts a cast that includes Teresa Romano, Yuliya Tkachenko, Luciano Ganci, and Simone Piazzola. Performance Dates: Oct. 13 & 15, 2023 Verdi’s “Don Carlo” will be performed in four acts in a production by {…}
The Teatro Comunale di Bologna has announced its 2023-24 season. Opera Erika Grimaldi, Luciano Ganci, and Claudio Sgura star in Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut.” Oksana Lyniv conducts the new production by Leo Muscato. Performance Dates: Jan. 26-31, 2024 Davide Livermore directs a new production of Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” with Roberto Aronica, Marta Torbidoni, Lucas Meachem, and Chiara Mogini. Renato Palumbo conducts. {…}
If you’re not fully conversant with the tale that is the centerpiece of one of Giuseppe Verdi’s most celebrated and performed works, “Il Trovatore,” then I highly recommend a little further reading and research before attempting to digest this opera. It may well help to alleviate some of the confusion in following the plot. There’s little one can do, however, {…}
The Teatri di Reggio Emilia has announced its 2023-24 season. Michele Pertusi, Piero Pretti, Ernesto Petti, Ramaz Chikviladze, Anna Pirozzi, Teresa Romano, Andrea Pellegrini, Michela Antenucci, and Andrea Galli star in Verdi’s “Don Carlo.” Jordi Bernàcer conducts the production by Joseph Franconi-Lee. Performance Dates: Nov. 17-19, 2023 Gregory Kunde, Luca Micheletti, and Francesca Dotto star in Verdi’s “Otello“ with Leonardo Sini {…}
The Teatro dell’Opera di Roma has announced its 2023-24 season. The season opens with Botio’s “Mefistofele” with Simon Stone directing. Michele Mariotti conducts a cast that includes John Relyea, Maria Agresta, and Joshua Guerrero. Performance Dates: Nov. 27-Dec. 5, 2023 Michele Mariotti conducts Puccini’s “Tosca” with Anna Pirozzi, Vittorio Grigolo, and Erwin Schrott. Performance Dates: Dec.9-14, 2023 Damiano Michieletto directs Mozart’s “Die {…}
The Teatro Municipale di Piacenza has announced its 2023-24 season. The season opens with Verdi’s “Otello” starring Gregory Kunde, Luca Micheletti, Antonio Mandrillo, and Francesca Dotto. Leonardo Sini conducts the production by Italo Nunziata. Performance Dates: Dec. 11-17, 2023 Carmela Remigio sings the title role of Donizetti’s “Anna Bolena” alongside Arianna Vendittelli, Luigi De Donato, Ruzil Gatin, and Paola Gardina. Diego Fasolis conducts the {…}
The Staatsoper Hamburg has announced its 2023-24 season. Opera Kent Nagano conducts Frank Castorf’s production of Mussorgsky’s “Boris Godunov.” The opera will star Alexander Tsymbalyuk, Kady Evanyshyn, Olivia Boen, Renate Spingler, Matthias Klink, Alexey Bogdanchikov, Vitalij Kowaljow, Oleksiy Palchykov, and Ryan Speedo Green. Performance Dates: Sept. 16-Oct. 7, 2023 Catherine Foster and Ewa Płonka sing the title role of Puccini’s {…}
Maryland Lyric Opera will continue its 2022-23 season with Verdi’s “Otello” on March 3 and 5, 2023. The production of Verdi’s final tragedy will star Gregory Kunde in the title role, Eleni Calenos as Desdemona, and Mark Delavan as Iago. Other cast members include Patricia Schuman and Yi Li. Leading the production is conductor Philippe Augin with David Gately directing. {…}