The ABAO Bilbao Opera is joining forces with Musikene, with the hopes of expanding the reach of opera, music, and culture. Per the agreement, Musikene, or Centro Superior de Música del País Vasco, will provide opportunities and spaces to create activities, such as talks and panels, that dovetail with the operatic offerings at the Bilbao Opera. The institution will also {…}
ABAO Bilbao Opera president, Juan Carlos Matellanes and the president of Kutxabank, Anton Arriola have signed a collaboration agreement to strengthen the alliance between the two institutions. Kutxabank joins the group of collaborating companies and institutions of ABAO Bilbao Opera as a sponsor of the opera company. The two institutions also the objective of supporting and promoting the implementation of {…}
Puccini’s “La Bohème” is set to close the Bilbao Opera’s 2023-24 season. The opera will be presented between May 18 and 27 at the Euskalduna Bilbao. Pedro Halffter will lead the Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa in Leo Nucci’s production. The opera will star Miren Urbieta-Vega, Celso Albelo, Manel Esteve and Marina Monzó. José Manuel Díaz, David Lagares, Fernando Latorre en un {…}
rABAO Bilbao Opera closes its XIX ABAO Txiki season with the premiere of “Hirira.” The opera was created by the members of the Easo Gazte Abesbatza choir, librettist Marta García, and Gorka Miranda. “Hirira” serves an invitation to observe and reflect on the places we live in, and transform them into other more sustainable, inclusive and diverse spaces and living {…}
Bilbao Opera has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera The season opens with Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale.” Simón Orfila, Enric Martínez-Castignani, María José Moreno, Sofía Esparza, Francesco Demuro, Juan Antonio Sanabria, and Damián del Castillo lead the cast. Maestro Sesto Quatrini conducts Emiliano Suárez’s production. Performance Dates: Oct. 19-28, 2024 The second opera is Puccini’s “Il Trittico.” “Il Tabarro” will star Carlos {…}
The Bilbao Opera has announced that the recent production of Verdi’s “Rigoletto” broke records. The production, which ended on Feb. 26, broke box office records and saw the final performance completely sold out. Additionally, the entire production sold 90 percent. The company also announced that the third and fourth performances received a double encore during the “Si, vendetta tremenda vendetta” {…}
The ABAO Bilbao Opera is set to present Mozart’s “Die Entführung aus dem Serail.” The performances, which will take place between Jan. 20 and 29, 2024 at the Euskalduna Bilbao, will star Jessica Pratt in the role of Kostanze, Moisés Marín as Belmonte, Leonor Bonilla as Blonde, Mikeldi Atxalandabaso as Pedrillo, Wojtek Gierlach as Osmin, and Wolfgang Vater as Selim. {…}
ABAO Bilbao Opera and BBK have announced the second edition of the Sociocultural Senior program. The program aims at interacting with older members of the Bizkaia community to help them overcome barriers that don’t allow them access to culture and opera at large. Among the activities on offer are the program “Encuentros BBK-ABAO,” which features workshops and conferences to allow {…}
(Credit: Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons) The assembly of Ópera XXI announced that baritone Juan Pons, ABAO Bilbao Ópera, and the company Idealista will receive a special honor. The announcement was made during a meeting on Oct. 26, 2023, at the Teatro Real in Madrid. Pons was honored for his career trajectory. The baritone, who retired from the stage in 2012, {…}
(Credit: © E. Moreno Esquibel) Nadine Sierra made history at a performance at the Bilbao Opera, encoring the audience after her aria, “Amour, ranime mon courage.” During the Oct. 27 performance, Sierra received a rousing ovation following her initial performance of the aria and then got a chance to give the first “bis” in her career. When the production opened {…}
Abao Bilbao Ópera will closes its 18th season of ABAO Txiki with the premiere of “Itsasotik,” a children’s musical-theatrical show that deals with issues related to the effects of pollution and plastics in the sea. “Itsasotik,” which runs on May 6 and 7 of 2023. is based on the work of Roger Calmel and with texts by Marta García. It {…}