(Credit: © D.R) Opera director Stefano Mazzonis di Pralafera has died at the age of 72. Stefano Mazzonis di Pralafera was born in the capital of Italy. He studied law and music in Rome, and at the same time pursued directing with the University Theatre in Rome. He directed his first operas in 1983 and was subsequently invited by the {…}
The Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona has announced a cast change for its upcoming production of “Otello.” The company announced that Gustavo Dudamel will replace conductor Riccardo Frizza at the podium. The news comes a day after the company announced a series of changes to its 2020-21 season including a new production for “Otello.” The company will now present {…}
(Credit: Opera Australia official website) Celebrated Australian opera director Elijah Moshinsky has died at the age of 75. Moshinsky graduated from the University of Melbourne and made his operatic debut in 1975 at the Royal Opera House with a production of Britten’s opera “Peter Grimes.” The famed director went on to stage a number of highly successful productions at the {…}
Credit: Bayerische Staatsoper official website The Royal Danish Opera has announced that Italian conductor Paolo Carignani has been appointed the new Chief Guest Conductor, starting in the 2021-22 season. The contract will last for three years. Carignani will replace the late conductor Alexander Vedernikov in his new position. “Paolo has gained great recognition as a conductor at the Royal Theater {…}
The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino has reported that its stream of Verdi and Boito’s “Otello,” presented on Nov. 30, was viewed by 70,000 on Rai 1. The opera starred Fabio Sartori, Marina Rebeka, and Luca Salsi in a new production by Valerio Binasco. Zubin Mehta conducted the opera which also starred Riccardo Della Sciucca as Cassio, Caterina Piva as Emilia, and {…}
(Credit: Tatiana Vlasova) Soprano Marina Rebeka will give a recital at the Teatro alla Scala on Oct. 20, 2020, with Giulio Zappa accompanying at the piano. The program for the concert includes Verdi’s “In solitaria stanza,” “Ave Maria,” and the famed “Brindisi” in its original version; Francesco Paolo Tosti’s “Vorrei” and “Visione”; Respighi’s “Notte,” “Pioggia,” and “Nebbie”; Cesar’ Kjui’s “La {…}
(Credit: Michael Cooper) Celebrated American-Canadian soprano Sondra Radvanovsky will return to the stage in a live concert on Sept. 3, 2020 at the Teatro Colón in A Coruña, Spain. The famed soprano will be joined onstage by baritone Carlos Álvarez, tenor Alejandro Roy, and bass Simón Orfila. Radvanovsky’s first live performance after a six-month hiatus will feature different excerpts from {…}
(Credit: © Gregor Hohenberg) The Metropolitan Opera Stars Live in Concert series continued this Sunday with a performance by the celebrated French-Italian tenor Roberto Alagna and Polish soprano Aleksandra Kurzak on the hilltop medieval village of Èze, France. On the outdoor terrace located at the Château de la Chèvre d’Or, Alagna and Kurzak were accompanied by the Vienna Morphing Quintet. {…}
For this week’s quiz, we turn back to one of the giants of the operatic canon – Verdi. In this iteration, you will be presented with a scenario regarding one of Verdi’s main operas. These scenarios will usually relate to which characters are designated opening or closing lines of an opera, or other unique details in terms of their positioning {…}
Piotr Beczala has revealed his interest in taking on the role of Verdi’s “Otello.” In an interview with Tagblatt, the tenor said that while the role appealed to him, “with the whole racism discussion, it has become complicated to perform this opera today. It is ridiculous that you can no longer imagine wearing make-up for ‘Otello’ in a theater. Forbid {…}
(Image Source: Official Website) Amici Opera is set to present Verdi’s “Otello” this July. The Philadelphia-based company recently reopened its doors in June for a performance of “La Forza del Destino.” “Otello” will be presented on Saturday, July 12 at 3 p.m. with an ensuing performance set to follow on Sunday, July 18 at 4 p.m., both at Redeemer UMC {…}