Opera on the James, located in Lynchburg, Virginia named singer, director, and teacher, Marco Nisticò General Director this past June. Nisticò summed up his mission on the company’s website, saying, “[Opera] has the capacity to move, inspire, provoke thought, and entertain. It helps us to understand who we are and how we relate to each other. As director of Opera {…}
(Credit: © Joan Tomás – Fidelio Artist) In 2019 the Donizetti Opera Festival celebrated its fifth anniversary after winning the prestigious Best Festival at the Oper! Magazine Awards. The festival showcased three works by the famed composer that brought an international audience and a number of rising stars and international singers. It was also the second year for famed conductor {…}
(Source: Francescomilioto.com) Earlier this year, Numi Opera took on “Der Zwerg” by Zemlinsky, officially launching a project that aimed to shine a spotlight on Jewish composers banned by Hitler. Now the company is set for its second production, “Der Ring des Polykrates” by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, best known for “Die tote Stadt.” In taking on this Korngold work, the company {…}
Alice Mong, the Executive Director of the Asia Society Hong Kong Center never realized how much operatic talent there was in Hong Kong and Asia. That is, until she saw them work in a masterclass with soprano Renée Fleming in 2013. Watching these artists work alongside the famed diva made Mong realize that Hong Kong and Asia was full of {…}
(Credit: Yasuko Kageyama) Damiano Michieletto is one of the most sought after directors today. Born in Venice, he graduated in modern literature at the Venice University and then went on to study theatre and opera production at the Paolo Grassi School of Dramatic Art in Milan. Success would follow him soon after when he debuted in 2003 at the Wexford {…}
(Credit: Javier del Real) Few opera directors have had as much influence as Emilio Sagi. After nearly 40 years, he is not just any other opera director – he is a brand and an icon, his work easily identifiable. He debuted in his native Oviedo with “La Traviata” in 1980 before triumphing in Madrid with “Don Pasquale” in 1982. Since {…}
(Credit: Philippe Stirnweiss) Since its world premiere in 2017, “Another Brick in the Wall” has garnered popularity throughout North America. The opera, based on the era defining album “The Wall” by Julien Bilodeau and first performed in Montreal before heading to the United Stated. The work, which set out to “give the audience an opportunity to discover a new dimension {…}
(Credit: Orlando Mendiola) Once Upon a Time composer Felix Jarrar examined the life of Kiki de Montparnasse in “Tabula Rasa.” He delved into the dark depths of Edgar Allan Poe’s “House of Usher.” He brought Ebenezer Scrooge out of the darkness and into the light with “A Christmas Carol.” He examined the myth of “Apollo and Hermes.” But four operas {…}
The winds of change are sweeping down the plains. Bring them on, say the directors of The Lyric Opera of Kansas City. Given the chance to re-invent itself with the opening of the Kauffman Center in 2011 and new production-facilities buildings shortly thereafter, the Lyric has grasped the opportunity with an impressive energy, wholly characteristic of the region’s revival. {…}
On Nov. 7, the White Light Festival in Lincoln Center will present the U.S. premieres of James MacMillan’s widely acclaimed “Stabat Mater” and “Miserere” as part of the 10th anniversary of the festival. Harry Christophers, music director and founder of The Sixteen choir, will lead both works alongside the Britten Sinfonia ensemble. It’s a big year for Christophers, who is celebrating the {…}
(Credit: Brittney Werner) If you visit New Orleans today, you can pop into the Napoleon House, the supposed location in which the former emperor would live out his days in North America. The music that you’ll hear while sipping your Pimm’s Cup in the 200-year-old house-turned-bar is classical. Beethoven’s “Eroica” symphony is on repeat, after all, the maestro wrote it {…}