(Photo: Anastasiya Taratorkina) Prior to the performance of Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne’s rarity “Phèdre” at the Badische Staatstheater in Karlsruhe, Operawire met up with one of its stars, the young Russo-German soprano Anastasiya Taratorkina, who was performing the role of Oenone. Although only in her third year as a professional singer, she is already building a reputation as a fine singing actress {…}
(Photo: Felix Grünscloß) Among the offerings at this year’s Karlsruhe Händelfestspiele was a performance of “Phèdre,” an opera by the fairly obscure French composer Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne. What the connection is to Händel, however, is somewhat of a mystery. There was no explanation provided in the program. The two composers never met; in fact, Lemoyne would have only been eight years {…}
(Photo: Alciro Theodoro Da Silva) At the end of February, start of March this year, the Badisches Staatstheater, Karlsruhe is presenting a Händel festival, which includes productions of “Rinaldo,” and “Siroe, Re di Persia,” among many other events. During a recent performance of “Il Ritorno di Ulisse in Patria” in Ravenna, OperaWire met up with Spanish tenor Jorge Navarro Colorado, {…}
The Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera The season opens with Ethel Smyth’s “The Wreckers” starring Dorothea Spilger, Ann-Beth Solvang, Brett Sprague, Martha Eason, Ralitsa Ralinova, Florence Losseau, Melanie Lang, Kihun Yoon, Ks. Klaus Schneider, Ks. Armin Kolarczyk, Oğulcan Yılmaz, Ks. Konstantin Gorny, and Liangliang Zhao. Georg Fritzsch conducts the new production by Keith Warner. Performance Dates: {…}
Germany’s Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe has announced its 2023-24 season. Here are the operatic and vocal performances. Premieres Verdi’s “Nabucco” will get a new production by Thaddeus Strassberger. Yura Yang conducts. Premiere Date: Oct. 21, 2023 Strauss’ “Die schweigsame Frau” will be conducted by Georg Fritzsch and directed by Mariame Clément. Premiere Date: Dec. 19, 2023 Mozart’s “Così fan tutte” will {…}
The Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe has appointed a new Intendant. The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Art announced that Christian Firmbach will take the position starting in the 2024-25 season. The board of directors of the theater unanimously voted in favor of Firmbach, who will succeed interim director Ulrich Peters. Firmbach’s contract will run for five years. In a statement Firmbach said, “The Badisches {…}
Tenor Matthias Wohlbrecht has been named Kammersänger of Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe. Wohlbrecht was given the honor for his artistic merit at the theater by the state of Baden-Württemberg. The tenor has been a member of the opera company since 2004 and has performed in such productions as “Ariadne auf Naxos,” “Fidelio,” “Die Frau ohne Schatten,” “Manon Lescaut,” “Tannhäuser,” “The Passenger,” {…}
The Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe has announced its 2022-23 season featuring six premieres and several revivals. Premieres Wagner’s “Der fliegende Holländer” with Georg Fritzsch conducting and Ludger Engels directing. Premiere Date: Dec. 10, 2022 Yura Yang conducts Bizet’s “Carmen” in a new production by Immo Karaman. Premiere Date: Jan. 21, 2023 Regie Carlos Wagner directs Händel’s “Ottone, Re di Germania” with {…}
The Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe in Germany has announced its 2021-22 season featuring ballet, theater, and opera. For this article, we will only highlight the opera productions. Premieres Mozart’s “La Finta Giardiniera” will get a new production with Yura Yang conducting and Anja Kühnhold directing. Premiere Date: Oct. 23, 2021 Emmerich Kálmán’s “Grafin Mariza” gets a new production with Georg Fritzsch {…}
(Credits: © Julien Benhamou / Kamil Szkopik) The Festival de Pâques will present a night of baroque music to be live-streamed on March 31, 2021 at 8:30 p.m. The performance will star mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre and counter-tenor Jakub Józef Orliński. The two singers will perform works by Jean-Philippe Rameau, Giulio Caccini, Henry Purcell, Georg Friedrich Händel, Thomas Dunford, Reynaldo Hahn, {…}
Nicole Braunger, the first woman opera director at Staatstheater Karlsruhe, will stay on with the theater for three more years, until the summer of 2024, as part of an interim management restructuring at the opera house, Badische Neuste Nachrichten reported on February 25. According to the report, Braunger originally asked that her contract not be extended beyond this year; however, {…}