Hessian Theaters And Opera Houses Close Until End of January 2021 Due to COVID-19

Credit: Staatstheater Wiesbaden official website The Staatstheater Kassel, Staatstheater Wiesbaden and Staatstheater Darmstadt, along with the Landestheater Marburg and Stadttheater Gießen, have decided to shut down until January 31, 2021 due to ongoing concerns over the spread of COVID-19. The five theaters made the decision after extensive consultations with Angela Dorn, the Minister for Culture of the state of Hessen. {…}

Dec 3, 2020

Lisette Oropesa & Javier Camarena to Sing ‘I Puritani’ in Gstaad

The Gstaad Menuhin Opera Festival has announced that Bellini’s “I Puritani” will be performed in concert. The Swiss festival, which will pay tribute to the city of London, will showcase Bellini’s final work with Domingo Hindoyan conducting the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. Lisette Oropesa will sing the role of Elvira while Javier Camarena will take on the role of {…}

Dec 3, 2020

Opera Meets Film: How the Intermezzo from Bizet’s ‘Carmen’ Is Used to Draw Thematic Connections with “Someone Has to Die’

“Opera Meets Film” is a feature dedicated to exploring the way that opera has been employed in cinema. We will select a film section or a film in its entirety and highlight the impact that utilizing the operatic form or sections from an opera can alter our perception of a film that we are viewing. This week’s installment features the {…}

Dec 2, 2020

Voices of Silicon Valley to Commemorate Victims of Ghost Ship Fire

(Credit: Victor Xie) Voices of Silicon Valley is set to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the Ghost Ship Fire with a memorial concert on Dec. 2, 2020. The showcase, which can be streamed on the company’s official YouTube channel, kicks off at 6 p.m. PST / 9 p.m. EST. Voices of Silicon Valley will perform music by Gesualdo, Billy Joel, {…}

Dec 2, 2020

Maggio Musicale Fioretino’s ‘Otello’ Records High Streaming Views

The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino has reported that its stream of Verdi and Boito’s “Otello,” presented on Nov. 30, was viewed by 70,000 on Rai 1. The opera starred Fabio Sartori, Marina Rebeka, and Luca Salsi in a new production by Valerio Binasco. Zubin Mehta conducted the opera which also starred Riccardo Della Sciucca as Cassio, Caterina Piva as Emilia, and {…}

Dec 2, 2020

National Student Opera Society Announces Online Holiday Gala

The National Student Opera Society has announced its first online gala, which is set for Dec. 11, 2020. The showcase will be hosted by Scottish tenor Nicky Spence and James Clutton, Director of Opera at Opera Holland Park and audiences will get a chance to hear performances from such opera stars as James Platt, Janis Kelly, Austin Gunn, Nicky Spence, {…}

Dec 2, 2020

The Ivor Composer Award Winners Revealed

The Ivor Novello Academy announced the winners of The Ivor Composer Awards announced on Dec. 1, 2020. The accolades are bestowed upon new works by composers writing for classical, jazz, and sound art. For the purposes of this article, our focus will be on opera or choral works. In the Stage Works category, the winner was Philip Venables’ “Denis & {…}

Dec 2, 2020

Nina Stemme, Carmen Giannattasio & Magdalena Kožená Lead Festival Aix-en-Provence’s 2021 Season

The Festival Aix-En-Provence has announced its 2021 season. The French festival will showcase Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde” conducted by Sir Simon Rattle and directed by Simon Stone. The production will star Stuart Skelton, Nina Stemme, Jamie Barton, Franz-Josef Selig, and Josef Wagner. Premiere Date: July 2, 2021 Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro” will be conducted by Thomas Hengelbrock and directed by {…}

Dec 2, 2020

Austria To Extend Theater Closures Due to COVID-19

(Credit: Landestheater Linz official website) The Austrian government will start to gradually lift full lockdown measures imposed in November 2020 due to the surge of COVID-19 cases experienced throughout the country. The current restrictions have been set to last until Dec. 6, 2020. However, theaters and opera houses are not going to be the first to reopen, according to Austrian {…}

Dec 2, 2020

Elīna Garanča, Cecilia Bartoli, Alice Coote & Juan Diego Flórez Lead Lucern Festival’s 2021 Season

The Lucerne Festival has announced its 2021 summer season. For this article, we will only concentrate on vocal performances at the Swiss festival. Riccardo Chailly conducts Gun-Brit Barkmin in a program that includes Mahler and Berg. Performance Date: August 13, 2021 Riccardo Chailly conducts Elīna Garanča in Mahler’s “Rückert-Lieder.” The program also includes Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 in D major. {…}

Dec 2, 2020

Jonas Kaufmann Confirms New Théâtre des Champs-Élysées Date

The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées has confirmed that Jonas Kaufmann will perform on Dec. 22, 2020. The theater revealed that the new date is a replacement for the canceled concert on Dec. 6. Kaufmann will be joined by pianist Helmut Deutsch for a program that includes works by Schubert, Beethoven, Mozart, Silcher, Mendelssohn, Liszt, Grieg, Bohm, Zemlinsky, Strauss, Brahms, Dvorak, Chopin, {…}