Over the years José Cura has distinguished himself as one of the great dramatic tenors of his generation singing such roles as the title role of “Otello,” “Tannhauser,” “Peter Grimes” and Samson in “Samson et Dalila.” His vocal prowess combined with his acting have made for some unforgettable performances. But Cura has not only become a distinguished performer, he has also {…}
The Hungarian State Opera has announced its 2018-19 season which is slated to includes a whopping 60 repertoire pieces and 16 premieres. The company has stated that the main theme of the season is taking audiences to Puccini’s Italy. There are also a series of concerts with some of opera’s biggest stars. Let’s break it down. Premieres (in order of {…}
This weekend will see opera houses in full swing presenting classics and new modern masterpieces. For this weekend preview, we’ve gone to Europe, South America, and Asia as many leading stars are performing around the world. Three Sisters – Teatro Colón, Argentina Hungarian composer Peter Eötvös’ opera opens the Teatro Colón in a new production by Rubén Szuchmacher. Jovita Vaskeviciute, Anna Lapkovskaja, {…}
The San Francisco Opera has announced its 2018-19 season, which features eight operas and one important concert performance. All of the productions will be brand new for the 2018-19 season. The season opens on Sept. 7, 2017, with the famed “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” as directed by Jose Cura. The production will star Ekaterina Semenchuk, Roberto Aronica, and Dimitri Platanias {…}
Another weekend is here and many of the biggest stars are performing in some of the greatest theaters. If you want to know where Anna Netrebko, Sonya Yoncheva, Jonas Kaufmann or Piotr Beczala are performing, here is a look at our top five to see this weekend. “Andrea Chénier”- Teatro Colón, Argentina José Cura continues his run of “Andrea Chénier,” {…}
It is Hispanic Heritage month! The Latin American community has, particularly in recent years, been a major boon to the opera world, providing it with great singers and composers, and a number of great operas. As the third part of this weekly series, we will look at some of the most popular male Hispanic singers currently dominating the operatic world. Rolando {…}
The Operalia Competition is just days away and in anticipation of the famed event, we will take a look back down memory lane at the opera singers who became stars after big performances at the competition. For this week’s installment, we will look at the early years of the competition and the 90s. Here are the winners of that decade {…}
When Jonas Kaufmann takes the stage on Wed. June 21, 2017, for his first ever “Otello” in Verdi’s masterwork, he will follow in a long line of major tenors that have dominated the opera at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. The opera first premiered with the ROH on Oct. 17, 1955, in a production starring Ramon Vinay in his {…}
It’s a weekend filled with many stars, premieres and role debuts. And there is something for any opera lover interested in exploring the classic repertoire. Austria “Rigoletto” continues its run at the Vienna State Opera with Yosep Kang, Roberto Frontali, and Aida Garifullina while “Don Pasquale” also gets one presentation with Michele Pertusi, Antonino Siragusa, and Danielle de Niese. The weekend {…}
The Royal Opera House Muscat has announced its 2017-18 season with a plethora of operas to see. The season opens on Sept. 14 with Verdi’s “Aida” starring Gregory Kunde and Kristin Lewis and conducted by Gianandrea Noseda. Olga Peretyatko and Maxim Mironov then take the stage for Rossini’s “L’Occasione fa il Ladro.” The opera, which open on Oct. 27, 2017, {…}
The starting point for any production of Peter Grimes lies in the interpretation of the opera’s central character, namely Peter Grimes himself: to what extent should the audience be encouraged to view the anti-hero as an outsider, a victim of the underlying, but all-pervading intolerance and hypocrisy which saturates the Borough, rather than simply as a sadistic sociopath? Clearly, any {…}