(Photo Credit: Israeli Opera House) Taking three years to write, composer Yonatan Cnaan and director Ido Ricklin’s opera, “Theodor: The Unknown Story of Herzl,” is a summarization of Theodor Herzl’s life. It was premiered by the Israeli Opera House in 2023, following the attacks on October 7th, 2023. Conducted by Nimrod David Pfeffer, the evening was powerful and monumental. Luckily, {…}
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: Teatro dell’Opera di Roma/Teatro alla Scala/Paris Opera) Over the past years, many coloratura and lyric sopranos have risen to fame and created unforgettable portrayals of the repertoire. But few have left as big an impact as Lisette Oropesa. The American soprano has been hailed for her interpretative depth and her incredible acting. She has become a mainstay at such {…}
(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 {…}
(Photo Credit: Getty Images) Maria Callas, better known as La Divina and the immortal muse of art, died on September 16, 1977, having lived a life that no-one else could have lived—or, better phrased, survived. Having sung in practically every major house in the world; recorded a enormous quantity of material from Verdi, Puccini, and Bellini, to Wagner, Spontini, Bizet, Rossini, {…}
(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 {…}
