Sarasota Opera has received two grants totaling $25,000 from The Exchange. The awards include a $20,000 program grant for Sarasota Youth Opera’s production of Rachel J. Peters’ “Rootabaga Country,” which will be performed Nov. 7 and 8, 2026. The company also received a $5,000 Elizabeth Lindsay Arts in Education Grant supporting its 2026 Community Outreach and Engagement Program for K-12 {…}
Ensemble Cherubim will present “Carols of Birds, Bells, and Peace from Ukraine” on Jan. 7, 2027, at St. Cecilia Roman Catholic Church in Boston. All ticket sales and additional gifts from the showcase will benefit Doctors United for Ukraine (DU4U). The proceeds will support pediatric training and care at the Okhmatdyt maternity and children’s hospital in Lviv. Artistic director Marika {…}
(Credit: Dan Kennedy) The Royal College of Music (RCM) has appointed Margaret Casely-Hayford CBE as its next chair of council. Casely-Hayford, who currently serves as a non-executive director on the Department for Education Board and is a member of the Oxford Street Development Corporation Board, will take up the position in August 2027. She succeeds Lord Black. Casely-Hayford’s career includes {…}
The Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb will open a new production of Georges Bizet’s “Carmen” on Oct. 23, 2026. Directed by Pier Francesco Maestrini and conducted by Pier Giorgio Morandi, the company’s chief conductor, the production will star Sofija Petrović and Emilia Rukavina in the title role with Giorgio Berrugi and Roko Radovan sharing the role of Don José. Darija {…}
The Austin Symphony Orchestra will present “To Have and to Hold,” a program of music and narration centered on Leonard Bernstein’s one-act opera “Trouble in Tahiti,” on Oct. 23 and 25 at Dell Hall at the Long Center. Peter Bay will conduct, and the composer’s daughter, Jamie Bernstein, will serve as director and narrator. The cast features baritone Charles Eaton, {…}
(Credit: Marine Cessat-Begler) Since winning Operalia in 2019, Adriana González’s career has steadily risen to the top, singing at many of the great theaters around the world and creating memorable interpretations. She has become renowned for her interpretations of Micaëla in “Carmen” and the Countess in “Le Nozze di Figaro” as well as Mimì in “La Bohème.” Last season she {…}
The Metropolitan Opera is set to revive Cherubini’s “Medea.” The production, which returns on Oct. 30, will star soprano Sonya Yoncheva in the title role. Yoncheva will sing the role in Italian in a translation by Carlo Zangarini for the first time, having previously performed it in its original French at Staatsoper Berlin in 2018. She will be joined by {…}
The Grange Festival has announced its 2027 season. The season opens with “The Story of Billy Budd, Sailor,” a gripping chamber opera after Britten. Ted Huffman directs a cast that includes Dominic Sedgwick, Toby Spence, Hugo Brady, Thomas Chenhall, Richard Gowers, George Barton, and Siwan Rhys. Benedict Kearns conducts. Performance Dates: May 23-29, 2027 Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” will get a new {…}
Director Robert Carsen has received the Leoš Janáček Memorial Medal from the Leoš Janáček Foundation. The famed director received the prize from Nadace Leoše Janáčka at the Janáček Brno Festival . Over the years, Carsen has worked at the Janáček Brno Festival and Národní divadlo Brno creating memorable productions of “Káťa Kabanová,” “Osud,” and “Výlety páně Broučkovy.” Carsen is a well-known Canadian {…}
(Credit: Bill Cooper) Svanholm Artists Management has taken on international representation of Welsh baritone David Kempster. Kempster’s recent engagements include Balstrode in a new production of “Peter Grimes” at Welsh National Opera, conducted by Tomáš Hanus, Monterone in “Rigoletto” at English National Opera under Richard Farnes, and Germont in “La traviata” for Royal Danish Opera. Kempster has also appeared at {…}
The Seattle Symphony has announced the recipients of its 2026-27 Community Stages Fund, a program that supports artists and community organizations in presenting performances at Benaroya Hall, including the Seattle Trans and Nonbinary Choral Ensemble (STANCE). STANCE, which describes itself as Seattle’s first and only all-trans and nonbinary choir, will present “The Sound of Remembrance: A Mosaic Requiem” on Nov. {…}