As the summer ends, distributors are staying rather quiet with only one major release available this week. Here is what you can look forward to. La Bohème Opus Arte will release “La Bohème” from the Royal Opera House. The new DVD showcases Richard Jones’ new production, which opened the 2017-18 Royal Opera season and stars Michael Fabiano and Nicole Car. Simona {…}
The weekend will offer a lot of Bel canto, verismo, 20th-century masterpieces, and one world premiere that should not be missed by anyone. And it also includes a number of legendary stars, as well as some of the most famous in the world. Here are top six to see this weekend. L’Italiana in Algeri – Salzburg Festival, Austria Cecilia Bartoli {…}
The Bilbao Opera has announced its 2018-19 Season featuring five main stage productions and four family-oriented productions. In total, the company will present 9 titles with a total of 46 performances. Main Stage The 67th Season of ABAO-OLBE opens on Oct. 20 with Puccini’s “La Bohème.” Soprano Ainhoa Arteta takes on the role of Mimì with Romanian tenor Teodor Ilincai {…}
Last year the Bayerische Staatsoper opened a new production of Donizetti’s beloved French work “La Favorite.” It was specifically created for Elīna Garanča, who was making her staged role debut after having impressed in the work in a concert performance at the Salzburg Festival alongside Juan Diego Flórez. This time around the company brought along two of her frequent collaborators, Mariusz Kwiecien {…}
Two companies’ seasons end this weekend with a number of stars continuing runs of important works. Austria The Wiener Staatsoper will showcase Debussy’s “Pelléas et Mélisande” starring Franz-Josef Selig, Bernarda Fink, Adrian Eröd, Simon Keenlyside and Olga Bezsmertna ending the season. Czech Republic The Prague Summer Nights festival continues with Opera scenes and the opening of Mozart’s “Die Zauberflöte.” {…}
Donizetti’s “La Favorite” has been announced for release on Deutsche Grammophon. The recording comes from the Bayerische Staatsoper and stars Elina Garanca, Mariusz Kwiecien, and Matthew Polenzani. Staged by Amelie Niermeyer, the production debuted earlier this fall and received rave reviews. Critics said, “Elīna Garanča as the nominal protagonist of the opera carried out her role driving the whole ensemble and {…}
It isn’t a particularly busy week in terms of releases, but there are some gems that people will undeniably want to check out. Here is a look at the French and German offerings you can find available for home release. Damrau in Bizet One of the major highlights of the Met Opera’s 2015-16 season was Bizet’s “Les Pêcheurs de Perles.” {…}
Maurisz Kwiecien and Peter Mattei will replace Dmitri Hvorostovsky in the Metropolitan Opera’s revival production of Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin.” On Thursday the Russian baritone announced his withdrawal from all opera performances for the foreseeable future. He stated, “It is with great sadness that I must withdraw from opera performances for the foreseeable future. I have been experiencing balance issues associated {…}