The Vienna State Opera has announced the 2018-19 season, which will feature many of opera’s great stars. There are a ton of ensemble artists that are due for big years, including Olga Bezsmertna who is slated for a whopping nine roles this season. But here is a look at five other artists who are poised to be the must-see performers {…}
The Virginia Opera has announced its 2018-19 season featuring four productions. Here is a look at what the company has in stock for prospective audiences! The season opens with Kurt Weill’s “Street Scene” featuring Maureen McKay, David Blalock, Jull Gardner, and Zachary James. Dorothy Danner directs the new production conducted by Adam Turner. Performance Dates: Sept. 28-Oct. 14, 2018 The season {…}
“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 we will take a {…}
Premiering in 1773, Jean-Phillipe Rameau’s first opera, “Hippolyte et Aricie,” was considered to be a ground-breaking and controversial work that would further inspire a continuation of masterpieces that Rameau would create in support of “modern” music. Modeled after Racine’s tragedy “Phèdre,” Rameau created a tragédie lyrique, that stirred perspectives surrounding a genre of French opera that began with Jean-Baptiste Lully {…}
Bryan Hymel has canceled performances of Gounod’s “Roméo et Juliette.” The Metropolitan Opera announced that Hymel canceled due to illness. As a result, Charles Castronovo will sing the role of Roméo. Castronovo returns to the Met after singing an acclaimed run of “Die Zauberflöte” earlier this season. He recently sang a run of “Roméo” at the Badishes Staatstheater and Don José in {…}
Pittsburgh Opera’s “Student Matinee” performance of Donizetti’s “The Elixir of Love” is set to bring 2,000+ schoolchildren to Benedum on Thursday, April 26. The performance, which will be shown from 10:30 – 1:00 p.m., will include Pittsburgh Opera’s full orchestra, top-quality singers, chorus, and production elements. The field trip will continue Pittsburgh Opera’s educational program to expand opera audiences. As noted in a press release, “Students {…}
The 2018 Metropolitan Opera has announced its 2018 Summer Recital Series. The company will once again bring free outdoor showcases, featuring rising young stars of the opera world to New Yorkers in all five boroughs. The series kicks off on June 11, 2018 at 8 p.m. at Central Park SummerStage and June 13, 2018 at 7 p.m. at Brooklyn Bridge {…}
Nicholas Phan’s new solo album for Avie Records “Illuminations” is set for release Friday, April 20, 2018. The release of the new album comes on the heels of Phan’s 2018 Grammy nomination for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. “Illuminations” reunites the tenor with his long-time recital partner, pianist Myra Huang and also joins forces with the adventurous Brooklyn-based orchestral collective, {…}
Mariella Devia will be awarded the “Premio Una vita nella musica 2018” this coming May. The soprano will be presented with the accolade on May 14, 2018, at the Sale Apollinee of Teatro La Fenice where she will be performing “Norma.” Devia has announced that after the “Norma” performances she will be retiring from the Opera stage and will dedicate her {…}
Who knows if we will ever hear Renée Fleming take to the opera stage to perform a recognized role again? Her departure from the Met Opera stage last May in “Der Rosenkavalier” seems, to this point, as the end of Fleming the opera star to make way for Fleming, a bigger star in a wider range of musical repertoire. Because {…}
Catherine Malfitano is that rare career where the star soprano also becomes a prominent director. The New York native was born on April 18, 1948, to a violinist and a ballet dancer. In such a circumstance it is no surprise that Malfitano would have some sort of career in the arts. And sure enough, her early upbringing cemented that. She {…}