Aleksandra Kurzak, Anna Netrebko, Nino Machaidze, Roberto Alagna & Anna Pirozzi Lead Festival Puccini’s 2025 Season

The Festival Puccini has announced its 2025 season featuring five of the composer’s most famous works. “Tosca” will open the festival with a star-studded cast. Aleksandra Kurzak, Carmen Giannattasio, Eleonora Buratto, and Valentina Boi will alternate the title role alongside Roberto Alagna, Michael Fabiano, Francesco Meli, Luca Salsi, Mikolaj Zalasinski, and Ivan Inverardi. Giorgio Croci conducts Alfonso Signorini’s production. Performance {…}

Dec 9, 2024

Artist of the Week: Aleksandra Kurzak

(Credit: Grand Théâtre de Genève) This week the Grand Théâtre de Genève is set to open a new production of Giordano’s “Fedora,” a rarely performed work that has become a showcase for a star soprano in recent years. This week Aleksandra Kurzak will sing her first Fedora, adding yet another demanding role to her growing diverse repertoire. Over the past {…}

Nov 8, 2024

Anna Netrebko, Aigul Akhmetshina, Angel Blue, Jonas Kaufmann, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Piotr Beczała, Luca Salsi, & Aleksandra Kurzak Lead Arena di Verona’s 2025 Season

The Arena di Verona has announced its 2025 season. Verdi’s “Nabucco” will get a new production. Stefano Poda will direct the new production. Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Youngjun Park, Luca Salsi, and Igor Golovatenko lead the cast that includes Anna Pirozzi, Maria José Siri, Anna Netrebko, and Olga Maslova as Abigaille, Francesco Meli and Galeano Salas as Ismaele. The cast is rounded out by Roberto {…}

Oct 18, 2024

Aleksandra Kurzak, Matt Haimovitz, Lester Lynch & David Portillo Lead New CD/DVD Releases

Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week, audiences will get to hear a world premiere recording of a new opera. There are also three solo albums including one historic recording and one from a great diva of our time. Here is a look! Jacqueline Pentatone releases the new {…}

Oct 7, 2024

Metropolitan Opera 2024-25 Review: Tosca

(Photo credit: Karen Almond / Met Opera) This season’s premiere of Met Opera’s “Tosca” features Polish soprano Aleksandra Kurzak, in the titular role, marking her 100th Met performance. Her Met debut was in 2004 as Olympia in Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffmann” and her performances leading up to this season have all been unforgettable, especially Kurzak as Tosca. Her voice alongside tenor {…}

Sep 27, 2024

Aleksandra Kurzak Celebrates 100 Performances at the Metropolitan Opera

On Sept. 25, 2024, Aleksandra Kurzak celebrated her 100th performance at the Metropolitan Opera. The Met said, “The opening performance of this season’s run of ‘Tosca’ marked Kurzak’s 100th Met performance. This season, the company also celebrates the 20th anniversary of her debut on December 10, 2004, as Olympia in Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann.” As noted the soprano made her {…}

Sep 16, 2024

Aleksandra Kurzak, Sondra Ravdanovsky & Lise Davidsen Lead Metropolitan Opera’s ‘Tosca’ Revival

(Credit: Karen Almond/Metropolitan Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to present Puccini’s “Tosca” for 13 performances. The production, which runs between Sept. 25 and Jan. 23, will feature three casts. The opening cast in September–October, will star soprano Aleksandra Kurzak in the title role alongside tenor SeokJong Baek and baritone George Gagnidze. Xian Zhang and Marco Armiliato conduct. OperaWire raved {…}

Sep 2, 2024

Elsa Dreisig, Benjamin Bernheim, Aleksandra Kurzak, Jonathan Tetelman, Ludovic Tézier Among Major Nominees for 2024 International Opera Awards

The International Opera Awards has revealed its 2024 awards. The awards ceremony is set to place at the Bayerische Staatsoper on Oct. 2, 2024.BBC Radio 3’s Petroc Trelawny will again host the awards ceremony. There will also be performances featuring opera stars and singers from the Bayerische Staatsoper Young Artists programme. Here is a rundown of all the categories: CONDUCTOR – Thomas {…}

Aug 26, 2024

Aleksandra Kurzak Announces New Album

(Credit: Aparte Music) Aleksandra Kurzak has announced a new album entitled “Cornelie Falcon.” The soprano announced that the new album will be released by Aparte Music. The new album will showcase the soprano alongside the Morphing Chamber Orchestra conducted by Bassem Akiki. The album will be an homage to Falcon’s repertoire and will include music by Mozart, Rossini, Weber, Beethoven, {…}

Jul 11, 2024

Teatro Real 2023-24 Review: Madama Butterfly (Cast C)

(Photo credit: (***Trigger warning based on topics of suicide and violence towards women) Madrid’s Teatro Real closes its season with an astonishing number of 19 performances with four different casts of Puccini’s tragic tale: “Madama Butterfly.” Nicola Luisotti was in charge of the Orchestra of Teatro Real for most of the performances, and the excellent Italian stage director Damiano Michieletto {…}

May 24, 2024

Sonya Yoncheva Withdraws from Gran Teatre del Liceu’s ‘Adriana Lecourevur’

The Gran Teatre del Liceu has announced a cast change for its production of “Adriana Lecourevur.” The company said, “We regret to announce that soprano Sonya Yoncheva has to cancel her participation in Adriana Lecouvreur because her dense schedule wouldn’t allow her to rehearse sufficiently for this role debut.” As a result, Aleksandra Kurzak will sing the title role on {…}