How Teatro Real Madrid’s Production of ‘The Tale of Tsar Saltan’ Transforms Fairy Tale Into Modern Psychological Drama

(Photo Credit: © Forster) The premiere of “The Tale of Tsar Saltan” at the Teatro Real de Madrid became an extraordinary event. Dmitri Tcherniakov offered the audience a new interpretation of the famous opera by Rimsky-Korsakov, transforming it from a fairy-tale into a psychological drama. The director boldly departs from familiar images and, like a surgeon, reveals the hidden meanings {…}

May 22, 2025

Artist of the Week: Carolina Lopez Moreno

This week, the Royal Opera House will revive Gounod’s “Faust” with a cast of rising stars, including Carolina Lopez Moreno. Moreno will make her Royal Opera House debut and her debut as Marguerite. It is perhaps one of her highest profile assignments to date after the soprano’s whirlwind months, which have seen her make unexpected debuts with the Gran Teatre {…}

May 14, 2025

The Person Behind The Opera, Pt. 1: Malcolm X

(Photo Credit @ Micah Shumake / Detroit Opera) As summer approaches, there are many exciting things on the horizon for the operatic world. While the 2025-2026 season at the Metropolitan Opera has many new names, across the world there are numerous premieres that inspire, one great example being the IN Series’ focus on new works and the Bayerische Staatsoper’s premiere of {…}

May 12, 2025

Brothers at War – The Poetic Genius of ‘Il Trovatore’s’ Often-Ridiculed Plot

(©Cory Weaver – LA Opera) Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” has an interesting reputation in opera history. A staple of the opera canon, it is widely beloved for its melodic abundance and as a final homage to the greatness of bel canto. For Verdi it came at a period of major artistic fecundity and stands as the middle opera in a trilogy {…}

May 8, 2025

Opera Meets Film: A Second Look At Stephen Frears’ ‘Florence Foster Jenkins’

(Photo Credit @Paramount Pictures) Stephen Frears‘ 2016 film, “Florence Foster Jenkins,” was a instantaneous, worldwide success among critics and the public alike. It was one of the most popular biopic projects in recent Hollywood history to touch upon the musical scene before the release of Pablo Larraín’s “Maria.” The film tells of the exploits of Florence Foster Jenkins (1868-1944), who {…}

May 6, 2025

Stream the Most Important New Opera of the Year for Free [Editorial]

(Credit: © Sandra Then) The sounds of history often linger, echoing into the present in ways that demand our attention. Sometimes they whisper, unsettling but distant; other times, they crash through with devastating force. In Germany, the past is never far from the surface, but it has rarely felt as raw and urgent as it does now. At the Hanover {…}

Apr 17, 2025

Guest Post: Conductor & Author Michael Downes on His Search for Wagner’s ‘Ring’

Conductor and author Michael Downes explains why and how he chose to trace the creation of Wagner’s masterpiece in his upcoming book. It is often said that there are more books about Wagner than any historical figure other than Napoleon or Jesus. This is not actually true, but the myth’s frequent resurfacing indicates that there are already an awful lot {…}

Apr 17, 2025

Opera Meets Film: The Psychological Heart of Opera in Niklas Paschburg’s ‘Opera’

Who knew that a music video entitled “Opera” could instigate a conversation on the nature of opera and being human? Thanks must be given to Niklas Paschburg, a German musical artist whose ‘ambient pop’ style blurs the distance between conscious and unconscious feeling: itself the very constitution of opera’s ‘third death.’ In this month’s “Opera Meets Film,” I explore the {…}

Apr 13, 2025

Artist of the Week: Rachel Willis-Sørensen

(Credit: Bernd Uhlig) On April 13, the Berlin State Opera kicked off a new production of “Norma” by Vasily Barkhatov. The opera opened the company’s 2025 festival with Rachel Willis-Sørensen making her role debut as Norma. For the American soprano, this new venture into the bel canto repertory represents a departure from the repertoire she is best known for, which {…}

Special Features

Artist of the Week: Daniela Candillari