This week the Gran Teatre del Liceu will open a new production of “Tristan und Isolde” with an all-star cast and featuring one of the most anticipated role debuts of the year. Headlining the cast is Lise Davidsen who will sing her first Isolde. The performances also mark her return to the opera stage following a hiatus due to pregnancy. {…}
(Credits: Brescia e Amisano) This week the Teatro alla Scala opens its 2025-26 season celebrating the 50th anniversary of Shostakovich’s death, presenting the 1934 edition of his masterwork “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.” It’s a work that is rarely performed due to its challenging score and huge cast. With La Scala’s new production, several cast members will be appearing with the {…}
This week, the Semperoper Dresden opened a revival of “Turandot,” one of Puccini’s most popular works. However, what made this revival special was the birth of a new interpreter of the title role. Camilla Nylund made her role debut as Turandot, returning to Puccini after singing Tosca to great acclaim. In a statement to OperaWire regarding her role debut as {…}
(Credit: Gianfranco Rota) This week, the Donizetti Opera Festival is set to open with the composer’s final work, one that has been rarely heard. Major sopranos have performed the work, and this revival will feature a major Bel Canto specialist. Carmela Remigio, who has become one of the festival’s mainstays, is one of the world’s most celebrated bel canto interpreters, {…}
This week, the Royal Opera House is set to unveil a new production of “The Makropoulos Case,” a rarely performed Janáček work. The opera plays with the idea of immortality and has historically been a vehicle for a great diva. This week, the London company does just that, but also brings Katie Mitchell, a director who has been known for {…}
(credit Yunchis Artyom5) This week the Metropolitan Opera’s “La Boheme” returns to the stage with a young cast of rising stars. Among them will be Juliana Grigoryan, who will sing her first lead role at the Metropolitan after debuting in 2024. The Armenian soprano will sing the role of Mimi, which she has already performed at the Ravenna Festival and {…}
This week, the Glyndebourne Festival is set to open its autumn festival, featuring several rising stars. Among those is Armenian baritone Aksel Daveyan, who is making his debut with the company. Over the years, the baritone has established himself as one of the most promising baritones of his generation. Over the years, he has appeared at the Zürich Opera in {…}
This week, the Teatro alla Scala is set to world premiere “Anna A.,” a new work by Silvia Colasanti. The work is conceived primarily for a young audience and tells the story of the poet Anna Akhmatova in 20th-century Russia. Narrated through a language that blends music and spoken word, the opera delivers a universal message about the conflict between {…}
(Credit: Javier del Real) This week, the Teatro Real de Madrid is set to open the 2025-26 season with a revival production of “Otello.” The production will star two of the world’s most important dramatic voices, including Brian Jagde, who will sing the title role for the first time. Otello is known as one of the most challenging roles in {…}
(Credit: Magali Dougados) On Sept. 5 and 6, Operfest Lisboa will present the national premiere of the chamber opera “Julie” by Philippe de Boesmans. The opera is based on the August Strindberg play “Miss Julie” and is celebrating its 20th anniversary. This week Lisboa will present it featuring a cast of rising stars including Julia Deit-Ferrand, a rising star in {…}
On July 18, the Bayerische Staatsoper will open a new production of Fauré’s rarely performed work “Penelope.” Based on the famed Homer epic poem, The “Odyssey,” the work, will receive a new production by Andrea Berth and will star the rising mezzo-soprano Victoria Karkacheva. The Russian will not only make her role debut in the title role, but she will {…}