(Photo: Marty Sohl / Met Opera) Simon McBurney’s German-language production of Mozart’s “Die Zauberflöte” lifts the veil between performers and audience members, making it easy to find a full-length opera (approximately three hours and 15 minutes) that is fun and interesting. OperaWire initially reviewed this production in detail for the Met’s 2022-23 season and is excited to see it included {…}
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra has announced the 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Orchestra Daniela Candillari conducts Pergolesi’s “Stabat Mater” with Giulia Semenzato and Jennifer Johnson Cano. The program includes Jennifer Gunn as a soloist and music by Simon, Barber, and Musgrave. Performance Dates: Oct. 3 & 4, 2025 Manfred Honeck conducts Mozart’s “Requiem” with Jeanine {…}
The Metropolitan Opera is set to revive Simon McBurney’s German-language production of Mozart’s “Die Zauberflöte.” The production, which premiered in 2023 to wide acclaim will return for 11 performances starting March 23 and running through April 26, 2025. When it opened OperaWire said, “This is the Best Met Opera Production in Ages.” The production will star Golda Schultz as Pamina, opposite {…}
The Canadian Opera Company has announced its 2025-26 season. The company opens its new season with Gounod’s “Romeo et Juliette” starring Bekhzod Davronov and Kseniia Proshina. The cast also includes Robert Pomakov, Gordon Bintner, Korin-Thomas Smith, Owen McCausland, Alex Halliday, and Alex Hetherington. Yves Abel conducts Amy Lane’s production. Performance Dates: Sept. 27-Oct. 18, 2025 Robert Carsen’s production of Gluck’s {…}
LA Opera has announced its 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the program. Opera Gabriella Reyes and Duke Kim star in the company premiere of Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story.” James Conlon conducts the production by Francesca Zambello. Performance Dates: Sept. 20-Oct. 8, 2025 Puccini’s “La Bohème” will return Janai Brugger, Oreste Cosimo, Erica Petrocelli, Gihoon Kim, Emmett O’Hanlon, and {…}
(Photo: Guergana Damianova) There is a question that has tormented opera fanatics for at least a century: how can opera go on? What sound represents the future of opera? While many, especially in the mid-20th century, leaned toward musicality that was either dramatically disruptive or staunchly conservative, Stravinsky forged a career where he managed to be both. In a world {…}
(Credit: MetropolItan Opera / Ken Howard) WARNING: This review features explicit language. It also uses some variation of the word “frustrating” a lot. To use a line from the cathartic and sublime climax in Jeanine Tesori and George Brant’s “Grounded” – “What the f*ck?” That quotidian expression perfectly encapsulates, in the context of the climax and at large, the frustration {…}
(Credit: Paoala Kudacki / Met Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to open its 139th season with Jeanine Tesori and George Brant’s new opera, “Grounded.” The opera will premiere on Sept. 23 and will run through Oct. 19, 2024. “Grounded” is a production that wrestles with the ethical quandaries and psychological toll of 21st-century warfare. Canadian mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo stars {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced a cast change for its June 19 performance of Mozart’s “Così fan tutte.” The company said that Ben Bliss will sing the role of Ferrando while Filipe Manu will act out the role on stage. Bliss is known for his work in Mozart and has sung the role of Ferrando at the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, {…}
The Royal Opera House has announced its 2024-25 season. Here is a look at the season. Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” will open the season with a cast that includes Luca Micheletti, Ying Fang, Huw Montague Rendall, Jacquelyn Stucker, and Ginger Costa-Jackson. Performance Dates: Sept. 2-15, 2024 Verdi’s “La Traviata” will feature two casts. The first cast will be headlined {…}
The Opéra de Paris has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Verdi’s “Falstaff” opens the season with a cast that includes Ambrogio Maestri, Olivia Boen, Marie-Andrée Bouchard-Lesieur, Andrei Kymach, Gregory Bonfatti, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Iván Ayón-Rivas, and Federica Guida. Michael Schønwandt conducts the production by Dominique Pitoiset. Performance Dates: Sept. 10-30, 2024 Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” will star Eleonora Buratto, Elena Stikhina, Aude {…}