Royal Ballet & Opera 2025-26 Review: Peter Grimes

https://operawire.com/royal-ballet-opera-2025-26-review-peter-grimes/

(Photo: ©2026 Tristram Kenton) If you have ever visited to the Suffolk seaside town of Aldeburgh, where Benjamin Britten lived, and which inspired his 1945 opera “Peter Grimes” – based on George Crabbe’s poem “The Borough” – then you will surely remember the remarkable views from the sea front: vast, empty skies, sunlight blazing on the water like a purifying {…}

News, Season Announcement

Benjamin Bernheim, Sabine Devieilhe, Olga Peretyatko, Magdalena Kožená, Klaus Florian Vogt, Nadine Sierra, Elza van den Heever, Michael Volle & Miina-Liisa Värelä Lead Philharmonie de Paris’ 2026-27 Season

https://operawire.com/benjamin-bernheim-sabine-devieilhe-olga-peretyatko-magdalena-kozena-klaus-florian-vogt-nadine-sierra-elza-van-den-heever-michael-volle-miina-liisa-varela-lead-philharmonie-de-paris-2026-27/

The Philharmonie de Paris has announced its 2026-27 season. Here are the vocal performances for the season. Yannick Nezet-Seguin will conduct Elza van den Heever and the Met Orchestra in a program of Strauss music. Performance Date: Sept. 1, 2026 Yannick Nezet-Seguin and Joyce DiDonato team up with the Met Orchestra for Mahler and Kaija Saariaho. Performance Date: Sept. 2, {…}

News

Metropolitan Opera Adds One Performance of ‘Tristan und Isolde’ Due to High Demand

https://operawire.com/metropolitan-opera-adds-one-performance-of-tristan-und-isolde-due-to-high-demand/

(Photo: Karen Almond / Met Opera) The Metropolitan Opera has added an additional performance of “Tristan und Isolde” due to overwhelming demand. The company said that the additional performance will be on April 4, at 12 p.m. and tickets will go on sale on Monday, March 9, at 12 p.m. ET. The cast will include soprano Lise Davidsen as Isolde, {…}

Reviews, Stage Reviews

Shanghai Opera House 2025 Review: Tristan und Isolde

https://operawire.com/shanghai-opera-house-2025-review-tristan-und-isolde/

(Photo: Rudolph Tang) If music is the art of time, Wagner’s opera is the art of a great deal of time—and gaining access to it at its shrine demands an extraordinary investment of time. For many years, a single ticket to the Bayreuth Festival was among the most coveted prizes for serious Wagnerians. It was rumored that applicants might wait up to {…}

Business

Houston Symphony Orchestra Drops Interim Tag on Chief Marketing Director Following Historic Season

https://operawire.com/houston-symphony-orchestra-drops-interim-tag-on-chief-marketing-director-following-historic-season/

The Houston Symphony Orchestra has named Alex Soares to the position of Chief Marketing Director. Soares has held the position of Interim Chief Marketing Officer since 2024, but the company decided to keep him in the title permanently following a strong season of results. Per an official press release, total ticketing revenue for 2025 exceeded $13 million, a historic high {…}

News

Philadelphia Orchestra Losses NEA Funding for Pride Concert

https://operawire.com/philadelphia-orchestra-losses-nea-funding-for-pride-concert/

As Pride Month kicks off, the Philadelphia Orchestra has announced that it has lost its National Endowment for the Arts funding for its Pride Concert. The orchestra announced the news via social media, noting, “The Philadelphia Orchestra is a nonprofit organization that believes in the power of music to bring people together, create understanding, and speak to the human spirit. {…}

Interviews, Stage Spotlight

Q & A: Nina Stemme on Her Farewell to Isolde, her Philadelphia Orchestra Debut & Singing Wagner

https://operawire.com/q-a-nina-stemme-on-her-farewell-to-isolde-her-philadelphia-orchestra-debut-singing-wagner/

For years, Nina Stemme has been regarded as one of the great interpreters of the Wagner repertoire. Her Isolde has been widely admired by audiences around the world at some of the greatest theaters such as the Metropolitan Opera, Glyndebourne, and Berlin. In May 2004, she bid farewell to the role in a stage production, and now June 1, she {…}

Business, News

Philadelphia Orchestra Announces New CEO & President

https://operawire.com/philadelphia-orchestra-announces-new-ceo-president/

The Philadelphia Orchestra has named a new President and CEO. The orchestra said, “We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Ryan Fleur as president and CEO of The Philadelphia Orchestra and Ensemble Arts!” In a statement, Ralph Muller, chair of The Philadelphia Orchestra and Ensemble Arts Board of Trustees said, “After an extensive international search, we are thrilled to appoint {…}