Johan Reuter, Susan Bullock, Natalya Romaniw, Elisabet Strid, Ricarda Merbeth & Russell Thomas Lead Finnish National Opera’s 2025-26 Season

https://operawire.com/johan-reuter-susan-bullock-natalya-romaniw-elisabet-strid-ricarda-merbeth-russell-thomas-lead-finnish-national-operas-2025-26-season/

The Finnish National Opera has announced its 2025-26 season. Premieres Engelbert Humperdinck’s “Hansel and Gretel” will get a new production by Richard Jones and will be presented for the first time since 1996. The new Finnish translation by Mikko Koivusalo will star Tommi Hakala, Samuli Takkula, Tuija Knihtilä, Maiju Vaahtoluoto, Elli Vallinoja, Polina Liiv, Suvi Väyrynen, Emma Mustaniemi, Dan Karlström, and Roland Liiv. Antony Hermus conducts. Performance Dates: Oct. {…}

Reviews, Stage Reviews

Metropolitan Opera 2024-25 Review: La Boheme

https://operawire.com/metropolitan-opera-2024-25-review-la-boheme-2/

Of course, this isn’t a review of the great Metropolitan Opera House, per se, but as a most fortunate and frequent attendee of the Royal Opera House, (now frustratingly called the Royal Ballet and Opera), it proved somewhat impossible for me to make comparisons. Yes, of COURSE, it IS big; it’s the biggest opera house in the world, as the {…}

News

Obituary: Legendary Soprano Lucine Amara Dies at 99

https://operawire.com/obituary-legendary-soprano-lucine-amara-dies-at-99/

Legendary soprano Lucine Amara has died at the age of 99. The American soprano was born on March 1, 1925 in Hartford, Connecticut but was raised in San Francisco. She went on to study at the San Francisco Community Music Center and sang in the chorus of the San Francisco Opera from 1945 to 1946. She made her concert debut at the {…}

Reviews, Stage Reviews

Berwaldhallen Review 2024: Khovanshchina

https://operawire.com/berwaldhallen-review-2024-khovanshchina/

(Photo Credits: Maarit Kytöharju) Opening Berwaldhallen’s 2024 Baltic Sea Festival, on August 24th, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Gerard McBurney produced a tastefully contemporary and neo-Wagnerian rendition of Modest Mussorgsky’s unfinished “national music drama,” “Khovanshchina,” to a ravenous public. Awarded, and rightly so, with three ovations, ten soloists from across Europe and three choirs successfully produced one of the most expressive versions {…}

Interviews, Stage Spotlight

Q & A: Angel Blue on Verona Incident, BBC Proms & Living in the Present

https://operawire.com/q-a-angel-blue-on-verona-incident-bbc-proms-living-in-the-present/

(Credit: Dario Acosta) American soprano Angel Blue is widely considered to be one of the most influential sopranos before the public today. The two-time Grammy Award winner, 2020 Beverly Sills Award recipient, and the 2022 Richard Tucker Award winner is celebrated worldwide for her honeyed soprano and affecting deliveries of many of the most beloved roles in the operatic repertory, {…}

DVD and CD Reviews, Reviews

CD Review: HDTT’s ‘Il Trovatore’

https://operawire.com/cd-review-hdtts-il-trovatore/

Cellini’s golden “Trovatore” from 1952 is arguably one of the most enduring in discographic history. It has always been a favorite of English-speaking critics, bringing together the Met’s roster of international superstars: Björling, Milanov, Warren, and Barbieri. In Italy, its critical fortune has been more mitigated; yet when pressed, even as staunch a skeptic as the notoriously exacting Elvio Giudici {…}

Reviews, Stage Reviews

Swedish Radio Choir 2024 Review: Igor Stravinsky’s ‘The Rake’s Progress’

https://operawire.com/swedish-radio-choir-2024-review-igor-stravinskys-the-rakes-progress/

(Photo Credit: Dagens Nyhter/Mattias Ahlm) On February 4, I had the pleasure of seeing Igor Stravinsky’s, “The Rake’s Progress,” for the first time. Having only read about the opera, I hadn’t come to realize how satirical Stravinsky could really be. Shostakovich and Prokofiev have been my references for the identity of Russian musical satire. Leading the Swedish Chamber Orchestra was {…}

Reviews

Swedish Radio Choir Review 2023: Rachmaninoff’s 150th Anniversary, ‘The Bells’

https://operawire.com/swedish-radio-choir-review-2023-rachmaninoffs-150th-anniversary-the-bells/

(Photo Credits: Arne Hyckenberg) The Swedish Radio Choir, on December 9, performed one of Rachmaninoff’s last pieces before his emigration from Russia, namely his choral symphony, “The Bells” (Op. 35), composed right before his English tour and other notable works like his “All-Night Vigil” (Op. 37) and his acclaimed “Vocalize” (Op. 34, No. 14). Accompanied by the Swedish Radio Symphonic {…}

News

Metropolitan Opera to Dedicate ‘La Bohème’ to Victoria de Los Ángeles’ Centennial

https://operawire.com/metropolitan-opera-to-dedicate-la-boheme-to-victoria-de-los-angeles-centennial/

(Credit: Allan Warren) The Metropolitan Opera is set to celebrate Victoria de Los Ángeles’ centennial on Nov. 1 2023 during a performance of “La Bohème.” The Victoria de los Ángeles Foundation announced that news noting that the legendary soprano made her Met debut in 1951 with “Faust” and appeared on the Met stage in performances of “Manon,” “Madama Butterfly,” “Pelléas {…}

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Johan Reuter, Susan Bullock, Natalya Romaniw, Elisabet Strid, Ricarda Merbeth & Russell Thomas Lead Finnish National Opera’s 2025-26 Season

Metropolitan Opera 2024-25 Review: La Boheme

Obituary: Legendary Soprano Lucine Amara Dies at 99

Berwaldhallen Review 2024: Khovanshchina

Q & A: Angel Blue on Verona Incident, BBC Proms & Living in the Present

CD Review: HDTT’s ‘Il Trovatore’

Swedish Radio Choir 2024 Review: Igor Stravinsky’s ‘The Rake’s Progress’

Swedish Radio Choir Review 2023: Rachmaninoff’s 150th Anniversary, ‘The Bells’

Metropolitan Opera to Dedicate ‘La Bohème’ to Victoria de Los Ángeles’ Centennial