Photo: Seattle Opera What a treat to see a world premiere deliver a gripping operatic experience. Everyone involved in this endeavor earned kudos individually and cumulatively—the vision of what was possible was manifested collaboratively, each creative element building upon the others. “A Thousand Splendid Suns” is a new opera based on Khaled Hosseini’s best-selling 2007 novel about the resilience of {…}
Photo: Antone Patterson An opera company’s highest calling is to commission new work—to contribute to the history of opera, to leave a legacy. Seattle Opera has done so, memorably, with “A Thousand Splendid Suns.” The piece, which opened February 25 in Seattle’s McCaw Hall and ends March 11, is Seattle Opera’s first mainstage world premiere since Daron Hagen’s “Amelia” from {…}
(Credit: Iko Freese) After a big red curtain opens up at the end of the overture, the audience is greeted with a massive movie screen. In the center, a door rotates to reveal Tamino behind an extension of the screen that covered the lower part of his body. Suddenly the projections came alive with the chase of the beast underway. {…}
The Mostly Mozart Festival has announced its 2019 festival, which is set to feature a number of stage productions, contemporary concerts and some of the world’s greatest musicians. For this article we will focus mainly on vocal events and opera. \ Opera The operatic selection for the Mostly Mozart festival is set to include Barrie Kosky and Suzanne Andrade’s production of {…}
The Virginia Opera has announced its 2018-19 season featuring four productions. Here is a look at what the company has in stock for prospective audiences! The season opens with Kurt Weill’s “Street Scene” featuring Maureen McKay, David Blalock, Jull Gardner, and Zachary James. Dorothy Danner directs the new production conducted by Adam Turner. Performance Dates: Sept. 28-Oct. 14, 2018 The season {…}