(Credit: Javier del Real / Teatro Real) Twenty years after its triumphant—and undeniably provocative—debut at the Salzburg Festival, Willy Decker’s “La Traviata” stormed the stage of Madrid’s Teatro Real. It is striking how a production that once shocked audiences has become a recognized classic, revealing its timeless, almost metaphysical essence. Premiered in 1853 at Venice’s Teatro La Fenice, “La Traviata” {…}
On July 19, the Teatro Real de Madrid is set to broadcast its production of “La Traviata.” The company announced that it will transmit the performance across multiple cities in Spain in co-production with TVE. The performance will showcase the famed Willy Decker production, which originally premiered in 2005 at the Salzburg festival and was later brought to the Metropolitan {…}
The Teatro San Carlo has announced its 2025-26 season. The season opens with Riccardo Frizza conducting Cherubini’s “Medea” in a production by Mario Martone. Sondra Radvanovsky stars in the title role alongside Francesco Meli, Giorgi Manoshvili, Désirée Giove, and Anita Rachvelishvili. Performance Dates: Dec. 3-16, 2025 Jessica Pratt, Maria Agresta, Désirée Giove, Francesco Demuro, and Mimmo Borrelli star in Ennio {…}
MyOpera is set to present Verdi’s “Attila” on May 17, 2025 from the Teatro Real. The performance will be broadcast live, starring Sondra Radvanovsky as Odabella, Christian Van Horn in the title role of Attila, Artur Rucinski as Ezio, and Michael Fabiano as Foresto. The cast is rounded out by Moisés Marín and Insung Sim. Nicola Luisotti conducts the concert {…}
The Opéra de Monte-Carlo has announced its 2025-26 season. The season opens with Wagner’s “Der Fliegende Holländer” starring Sir Bryn Terfel, Albert Dohmen, Asmik Grigorian, Daniel Behle, Angharad Lyddon, and Trystan Llyr Griffiths. Gianluca Marcianò conducts the semi-staged version. Performance Date: Nov. 2, 2025 Anna Pirozzi stars in Verdi’s “Aida” alongside Antonio Di Matteo, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Arsen Soghomonyan, Erwin Schrott, and Artur Rucinski. Massimo {…}
The Palau de les Arts in Valencia has announced a cast change for its Dec. 8 performance of “Il Trovatore.” In a statement posted on social media, baritone Artur Ruciński said he was canceling due to “health reasons.” As a result, Lucas Meachem will perform the role of the Count. Meachem recently performed the role at the Houston Grand Opera {…}
(Credit: © Antoni Bofill) OperaVision is set to present Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” from the Gran Teatre del Liceu. The broadcast will be held on Nov. 30, 2024 and will feature a production by Jean-Claude Auvray and conducted by maestro Nicola Luisotti. The cast includes Alejandro López, Anna Pirozzi, Artur Rucinski, Brian Jagde, Caterina Piva, John Relyea, and Pietro {…}
I have more than once commented that OPERA, no matter the tale, should always be about the music; specifically, the singing, above and beyond anything else. It is, after all, what truly defines the art. And in Katie Mitchell’s and Robin Tebbutt’s revival production of Donizetti’s tragic opera, the singing is inarguably superlative. Alas, this is a truly grim tale. {…}
The Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Josep Pons conducts Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” with Alexei Botnarciuc, Daniel Kirch, Sara Jakubiak, Ángeles Blancas, and Pavel Černoch. Àlex Ollé conducts. Performance Date: Sept. 25-Oct. 7, 2024 Maria Agresta and Saioa Hernández star in Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” with Artur Ruciński, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Brian {…}
The Teatro Real de Madrid has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Nicola Luisotti and Andrés Salado conduct Cilea’s “Adriana Lecouvreur” in David McVicar’s production. The production will star Ermonela Jaho, Maria Agresta, Brian Jagde, Matthew Polenzani, Elīna Garanča, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Nicola Alaimo, and Manel Esteve. Performance Dates: Sept. 23-Oct. 11, 2024 Charpentier’s “David et Jonathas” will be performed in concert with Petr Nekoranec, Gwendoline Blondeel, Jean-Christophe {…}
Credit: © OMC-Marco Borrelli On Sunday November 26th, the Opéra de Monte-Carlo gave the final performance of its first staged opera of the season, a new production of Verdi’s “Don Carlo” in the four-act Italian version of 1884. The staging was entrusted to the Turin-based Davide Livermore, scenographer Giò Forma, costume designer Sofia Tasmagambetova and Video designer D-WOK. Although Livermore {…}