This review is for the performance on Monday, January 14, 2019. This season’s revival of “Aida” is well underway after opening in September of 2018, boasting a compelling cast of artists such as Anita Rachvelishvili and Anna Netrebko. The second cast which reopened the opera’s run earlier this month has re-stoked the fires of excitement and offered audiences freshness to {…}
It’s the third weekend of the year and we have a number of great productions to recommend. For this weekend, we’re looking at three of Puccini’s most popular operas and two lesser-known classics that are getting new productions. La Bohème – Australian Opera, Australia Joyce El-Khoury takes on the title role of Mimì alongside Ivan Magrì as Rodolfo. Nicholas Milton conducts the production {…}
The Hungarian State Opera is set to present a new production of Ponchielli’s ‘La Gioconda.” The rarely performed work is part of a season dedicated to Puccini’s Italy. The work by Puccini’s master Amilcare Ponchielli returns to the Erkel Theatre after a hiatus of 20 years. The new production will be directed by András Almási-Tóth and will star Eszter Sümegi as Gioconda, Bernadett {…}
Opera legend Lucine Amara, Artistic Director of the New Jersey Association of Verismo Opera, announced the winners and the finalists selected in the company’s 30th Annual International Vocal Competition. This year’s winners were baritone Gerardo de la Torre from Mexico and soprano Joowon Chae from New York, who tied for first place and will share a $3,000 award. Meanwhile, tenor {…}
January is more than halfway done and a lot of companies are starting up again with unique performances. This week’s picks center on works composed in the 20th century and beyond, with one exception. Here’s the list (in alphabetical order by company). As One – Alamo City Opera For two nights (Saturday and Sunday), Laura Kaminsky, Mark Campbell, and Kimberly {…}
On Site Opera will present the world premiere of Michi Wiancko and Deborah Brevoort’s “Murasaki’s Moon” this May. The world premiere is set to take place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Astor Chinese Garden Court. Per a press release, the opera is inspired by the life and work of Lady Murasaki, a member of the Japanese Imperial Court in {…}
PARMA Recordings has announced that an album of Richard Thompson’s new chamber opera “The Mask in the Mirror” will be released on Feb. 8, 2019. Over three acts, the audience becomes acquainted with revered 20th century African American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar and the adversity he had struggled to overcome in his short life. Despite finding literary and financial success, {…}
“Opera Meets Film” is a feature dedicated to exploring the way that opera has been employed in cinema. We will select a section or a film in its entirety, highlighting 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 Dustin Hoffman’s “Quartet.” {…}
This spring, a new production of “Semele,” directed by Thomas Guthrie, will take the Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists, and John Eliot Gardiner on a European tour. This will be the team’s first time collaborating together on Handel’s 1744 opera since recording it for Erato Records over 30 years ago. The ensemble is set to perform at Europe’s foremost concert halls {…}
OPERA America has announced the 16 participants hailing from the U.S., Canada, and Latin America who will partake in its 2019 Leadership Intensive program. The program’s 6th generation of participants were chosen “through a competitive selection process focusing on candidates’ potential to make significant contributions to the opera field.” Participants for this year include Daniel Benavent, General Manager of Theatre Aspen; Vincent Covatto, {…}
Opera Columbus and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra have announced that they will collaborate for the first time to produce a new historically based chamber opera titled “The Flood” – a story of “loss, human tragedy and redemption set in Columbus.” “The Flood” is inspired by the Ohio Flood of 1913, and chronicles the devastation caused by the natural disaster in the small neighborhood {…}