At the start of Rossini’s “Semiramide,” Arsace returns to Babylon after a long time away. For years, Elizabeth DeShong has been a fixture at the Metropolitan Opera singing in such operas as “La Rondine,” “Aida,” “The Enchanted Island,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “Madama Butterfly,” and “Lulu.” Then after the 2015-16 season, she did not return until now to take on {…}
In 2017, countertenor John Holiday took home the distinguished Marian Anderson Vocal Award, which not only recognizes him as an artist with a bright future lying ahead but also allows him to share that zeal in a spirited recital on Thursday, February 15 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Operawire had the chance to speak with John Holiday to {…}
Jake Heggie is considered one of the greatest modern composers of our time. His work has been widely performed throughout with “Dead Man Walking” becoming one of the most popular modern operas around. His “Moby Dick” has also garnered quite a following and has also been performing throughout the United States. In 2015 after the success of “Moby Dick” at {…}
Lawrence Brownlee is one of the great bel canto tenors of this generation, singing the works of Donizetti, Rossini, and Bellini, among others, to tremendous critical success around the globe. He is currently in the midst of a run in one of his signature roles as Arturo in Bellini’s “I Puritani” at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and prepping for {…}
Andrea Mastroni is not just a bass. The Italian artist actually spent a great portion of his studies as an aesthetic philosopher, working to deepen his understanding of musical texts. In an interview last year with OperaWire, he noted that this was essential to his ability to be a performer and interpreter. “Learning philosophy makes you think constantly about everything you {…}
Layla Claire is recognized as one of the rising stars of the opera world, having performed at some of the most acclaimed theaters in the world. A graduate of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at the Metropolitan Opera, Claire has specialized in the works of Mozart and Handel and has also performed operas by Britten. She is also a {…}
It was 1980, and Hildegard Behrens was at the Metropolitan Opera singing “Fidelio” with Jon Vickers. Gastón Ormazábal was but a student at Columbia University, where he is today a Senior Research Scientist. The two were about to meet for the first time. Neither knew that they would develop a friendship that would transcend Behrens’ lifetime. As Ormazábal, now the {…}
The year 2018 is shaping up to be a major one for composer Daniel Thomas Davis. On Feb. 15 and 16, he will witness the staged premiere of his 2015 opera “Family Secrets: Kith and Kin” and then, this weekend, his opera “Six. Twenty. Outrageous,” will also get its world premiere. The composer hails from North Carolina and has had {…}
Murder, mystery, and mayhem are on offer in “Elizabeth Cree” when it opens this Saturday, Feb. 10 at the Chicago Opera Theater. Set in 1880s Victorian London, the opera begins with the hanging of Elizabeth Cree for the murder of her husband, John. The story then circles back to the trial for that murder and Elizabeth’s own narrative of her {…}