This week the Seattle Opera is set to world premiere “Jubilee” created by Tazewell Thompson and with vocal arrangements by Dianne Adams McDowell and orchestrations by Michael Ellis Ingram. The work tells the story of the historic Fisk Jubilee Singers that came together after the emancipation and the end of the Civil War. The work features important spiritual and and {…}
(Photo credit: Peter Oppenländer) OperaWire was invited to experience the 5th annual Waiblingen International Opera Workshop led by baritone Thomas Hampson and Wailblingen-native and soprano Melanie Diener. The workshop, which took place Sept. 15-21, included daily breathing workshops led by Claudia Stefke-Leuser and individual coaching with Hampson and Diener, two masterclasses, two performances, and an educational outreach program. The participants {…}
(Credit: Bern Uhlig) On Oct. 2, 2024, the Berlin State Opera will open a new production of “Nabucco.” The production is one of the high-profile profile productions of the year due to its two leads. Luca Salsi, one of the world’s great baritones, takes on the title role, and Anna Netrebko will sing the role of Abigaille for the first {…}
(Credit: Ken Howard / Met Opera) On Sept. 23, the Metropolitan Opera will open its 2024-25 season. The season opening is always one of the most glamorous events of the opera season on a worldwide scale. And to commemorate the occasion this year, the company will present Jeanine Tesori’s “Grounded” to the legendary stage for the first time with an {…}
(Credit: Marty Sohl) Throughout the entire history of opera, from its beginning in the Francophile 18th century to the American 21st, there have been numerous moments which stand out as having been controversial of their time and controversial even today due to the contentious nature of the events. If one looks to contemporary issues like Anna Netrebko’s alleged blackface while {…}
(Credit: Vincent Pontet/Paris Opera) This week the Paris Opera opened its 2024-25 season with Verdi’s final work. The production featured some of the greatest interpreters of the opera as well as an array of singers new to the work. Among them was Olivia Boen who was making a double debut. The American soprano not only made her role debut as {…}
(Credit: Meigui Zhang Facebook) This week the San Francisco Opera is set to open its 2024-25 season with a production of “Un Ballo in Maschera,” an opera that has not been performed at the company in 10 years. For this new production, the San Francisco Opera has assembled an all-star cast that includes Meigui Zhang, a rising star in the {…}
(Photo Credit: LA Opera/Cory Weaver) Throughout time, many operas have been written which, due to the nature of things, distracts from their quality, instead leaving them behind for other, newer alternatives. However, thanks to opera’s dedicated fanbase, including everyone from laymen to academics to performers and beyond, many operas which didn’t get their fair shot are given new life after {…}
After 140 years, Wagner’s final opera, “Parsifal,” first performed at the second Bayreuth Festival in 1882, finally got its Mexican premiere in April of this year. While not quite an opera—it was defined by Wagner as an ‘Bühnenweihfestspiel,’ or a ‘stage festival play’ with a sacred focus—Wagner’s final piece testifies to his consummate understanding of opera as not just a {…}
