Last week Operawire took a look at some of the 10 must see summer operas in the United States. It featured a range of repertoire and some very intriguing new stars. This week we look at the European Festivals and see where the big stars will be and what they will be performing. The following is a list of OperaWire’s 10 {…}
Luigi Illica is a rather famous man in the world of opera. If you don’t believe me, then look at his body of work. “Manon Lescaut,” “La Bohème,” “Tosca,” “Madama Butterfly.” And those are just the Puccini selections. The librettist also authored such prominent opera works as “La Wally” and “Andrea Chénier.” But the majority of Illica’s output has been {…}
Michael Fabiano has steadily grown into one of the most sought after tenors in the world. From the first time, he appeared at the Metropolitan Opera’s Met National Council Auditions to his fiery Met debut, the young singer has shown so much passion on stage that reminds one of the golden age. But there is one composer that he has {…}
We have gone through emotional anecdotes. We sifted through some of the essential nights in the new house’s history. Now we turn to the people that have made it great. In compiling a list of the 50 most influential people in the history of the new house, we realized rather early on that we would be leaving many people out {…}
The Metropolitan Opera celebrates its 50th anniversary Sunday with a massive gala featuring the greatest stars in opera. The company, which moved to Lincoln Center in 1966, is among the most renowned opera institutions in the world, a place where the greatest of all singers commune on one of the biggest stages in one of the biggest theaters. A few {…}
Now that that most of the major opera companies in the U.S are about to finish their 2016-17 season, most opera lovers will be left searching for what to see. While most festivals take place in Europe, many companies and festivals will be active introducing new works, bringing old classics and discovering new talent. The following is a list of {…}
May is Asian Heritage Month in the United States and in honor of cultural diversity, OperaWire will look at honoring the Asian opera stars making major headlines at this very moment. Yonghoon Lee There are few tenors at this moment who can truly dominate the spinto tenor repertoire like Yonghoon Lee does. The South Korean tenor has established himself as {…}
April 28 marks the anniversary of the world premiere of Giacomo Meyerbeer’s “L’Africaine,” his final opera. While he was a titan in his day, Meyerbeer has struggled to find footing in the modern operatic culture and many of his works, including “L’Africaine” remain obscure and unknown. And yet there are some unique features about this work that make it a {…}
Rolando Villazón is one of the most admired singers in the opera world for his sheer abandon on stage and his detailed characterizations. He has created some very memorable performances and has recorded a number of great albums. However, this week he steps offstage and goes back to the directing seat for Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale.” Villazón directed his first opera in {…}
