San Francisco Opera outdid itself with Christoph Willibald Gluck’s 18th century masterpiece, “Orpheo ed Euridice.” An absolute gem, the opera was the piece de resistance of the season. The cast, the set, the music, all in a new production by director Matthew Ozawa and conducted by acclaimed early music interpreter Peter Whelan in his American opera stage debut. Rena Butler made {…}
San Francisco Opera announced that Jack Calhoun will take on the role of board president on August 1, 2023. Calhoun succeeds President Keith Geeslin, who will be stepping down after a decade of service once the centennial season closes. Serving the board since 2008, Calhoun currently holds the chair for the Marketing Committee and is a member of the board’s {…}
San Francisco Opera created a memorable performance out of Verdi’s “La Traviata,” a work That once heard, will always im[act you deeply. Director Shawna Lucey, the recently appointed general director of Opera San José, and her team created a lovely production that detailed the changing seasons of nature and buttressed the changing love-relationship between Violetta and Alfredo. Each scene depicted shifting {…}
The San Francisco Opera has announced the 2023 Adler Fellows. The participants include sopranos Mikayla Sager, Arianna Rodriguez, and Olivia Smith; mezzo-sopranos Gabrielle Beteag and Nikola Prinz; tenors Victor Cardamone, Edward Graves, and Moisés Salazar; and bass-baritone Jongwan Han. Of these artists, Beteag, Cardamone, Graves, and Sager are second-year fellows. Artists selected as pianist coaches includ Yang Lin and Marika {…}
San Francisco Opera is set to present a unique immersive experience around its upcoming production of Verdi’s “La Traviata.” On Nov. 19, audience members will be invited to a performance of the first act of the opera in a new production by Shawna Lucey and conducted by Eun Sun Kim with Pretty Yende and Jonathan Tetelman headlining the cast. Following {…}
On Nov. 9, the San Francisco Opera will host a Zoom conversation with soprano Pretty Yende to celebrate the release of the latest episode of its “In Song” series. This episode features Yende, and was filmed in Piet Retief and Cape Town, shining a spotlight on Zulu culture that Yende grew up with. There are performances of “Iqhude,” a Zulu {…}
(Credit: Jiyang Chen) San Francisco Opera is set to open a new production of Gluck’s “Orpheus and Eurydice” on Nov. 15, 2022. The opera will feature countertenor Jakub Jósef Orlinski in his company debut alongside Meigui Zhang and Nicole Heaston. Peter Whelan, in his American debut, will conduct the opera, which will be directed by Matthew Ozawa and choreographed by {…}
On October 10, 2022, San Francisco Opera launched the latest installment of “Streaming the First Century,” the company’s free online hub for historic recordings and interviews. The new installment, titled “Parle-vouz francais?” features performances of French repertory from SFO’s first 100 seasons. Among them are operas by Massenet, Charpentier, Berlioz, Messiaen, as well as the company’s oldest recording: a piano {…}
San Francisco Opera is set to present Giuseppe Verdi’s “La Traviata” in a new production. The opera is set to be conducted by Music Director Eun Sun Kim and directed by Shawna Lucey. This new vision of a beloved classic will be the first new production of “La Traviata” to be built by the Company in 35 years. In an {…}
(Credit: Cory Weaver) San Francisco Opera’s production of “Eugene Onegin” took audiences back in time to the Russia of Alexander Pushkin’s classic poem. Robert Carsen’s scenic rendering gave us a cross-section of the world as it was, with peasants and privileged, the drama of duels, balls, and bedrooms. Spread before the audience, in blush pink and dark blue, peachy yellow {…}
San Francisco Opera will host a free community open house on Oct. 23, 2022. The event will feature a wide range of activities and workshops for families including giveaways, scavenger hunts, onstage performances, “from the archives” display, instrument show and tell, conducting lessons, and the opportunity to snap a stage selfie, among others. There will also be “Opera in an {…}