In 2022, the Georgian bass, Giorgi Manoshvili, made a big impression performing the role of Caliban in Halévy’s opera “La Tempesta” at the Wexford Festival Opera. He also thrilled the audience with a recital on the main stage. This year, he returned to the festival and, once again, was a big hit with audiences. He did this while learning his {…}
(Photo: Janina Laszlo) The big hit at this year’s Wexford Festival Opera was undoubtedly Marco Tutino’s opera “La Ciociara,” which tells the story of two women’s desperate bid to survive during the turmoil of the allied invasion of Italy. The star of the performance was Israeli mezzo-soprano Na’ama Goldman in the role of Cesira. Over a coffee, OperaWire quizzed the {…}
(Photo: Clive Barda) Anyone who has heard Opera Rara’s recording of Donizetti’s “Zoraida di Granata” must have been very excited by the Wexford festival’s decision to put on a fully staged production. It is a veritable bel canto feast with beautiful arias and ensemble singing, stretching over a period of approximately three hours. “Zoraida di Granata” premiered in Rome’s Teatro {…}
(Photo: Clive Barda) It is inevitable, given the Wexford Festival Opera’s commitment to unearthing forgotten and neglected operas, that they will occasionally present a work that ends up flopping. While this was not the case with Camille Erlanger’s largely unknown “L’Aube Rouge,” it is unlikely to signal a change in its fortunes. At best, Erlanger is now considered a minor {…}
(Photo: Clive Barda) In 1943, Italy was a country wracked by the turmoil of war. Not only had the allied armies invaded, but internecine conflict had broken out amongst the Italian people. Communities and families were against each other as the patriots and fascists fought for control. The situation was depicted in Alberto Moravia’s 1957 novel “La Ciociara,” which later {…}
(Photo: Padraig Grant) The second of Wexford Festival’s pocket operas, Opera Beag, was a presentation of Donizetti’s opéra-comique “La Fille du régiment.” Operating on a low-budget and using only piano accompaniment, director Heather Hadrill was under no illusions of the difficulties involved. In her program notes, she stated “The challenge of pocket operas is to give as full a sense {…}
(Photo: Padraig Grant) Each year, Wexford Festival Opera presents a number of Pocket Operas (Opera Beag), short operas played to piano accompaniment, performed during the afternoon in the opera house’s smaller Jerome Hynes theatre or other small venues in the city. Although they are usually low-budget productions, they are usually hugely entertaining and musically to a high standard. This year, {…}
(Photo: Padraig Grant) The success of the Wexford Factory, the festival’s development program for young singers, was splendidly illustrated by its presentation of Rossini’s comic opera “L’Italiana in Algeri.” Without exception, the singers engaged enthusiastically with Conor Hanratty’s fast-moving and highly amusing staging that kept the audience entertained and laughing along. Although they possess various levels of experience, all produced {…}
As a follow-up to OperaWire’s recent interview with Irish soprano Ava Dodd, we thought it would be a bit of fun to ask her a few light-hearted questions that might shed a bit of light on other aspects of her career and personality. OperaWire: What was the first opera you attended? Ava Dodd: “Die Zauberflöte.” OW: What was the last {…}
The Wexford Festival Opera has announced its 2024 season which will feature 80 events across 16 days. It kicks off on Oct. 18, 2024, and runs through Nov. 2, 2024. Here is a rundown of the operas to be performed. First up is Mascagni’s “Le Maschere.” Francesco Cilluffo conducts and Stefano Ricci directs. Performance Dates: TBA Charles Villiers Stanford’s “The Critic” {…}
(Photo: Olivia Da Costa) One of Ireland’s most exciting young singing talents is Dublin-born soprano Ava Dodd. At only 25, she already has an impressive biography. Not only has she appeared on the stage in a variety of roles, including Oscar from Verdi’s “Un Ballo in Maschera,” the Waldvögelein from Wagner’s “Siegfried” and Perdita from Goldmark’s “Ein Wintermärchen,” in venues {…}