(Credit: Marty Sohl/Met Opera) It’s been 11 years since the Metropolitan Opera presented Richard Strauss’ opera within an opera, “Ariadne auf Naxos.” One of the composer’s intimate works, “Ariadne” features some of Strauss’ most popular music. To pull this work off effectively, it requires four particularly great voices. For this run, the Met Opera put together a starry cast that {…}
Richard Strauss’s “Ariadne auf Naxos” returns to the Metropolitan Opera for the first time since 2011. The opera, based around an opera within an opera and featuring a unique blend of comedy and drama, will star Soprano Lise Davidsen, following her performances earlier this season as Eva in Wagner’s “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.” Conductor Marek Janowski takes to the podium to {…}
(Credit: Georg Zeppenfeld) The Wiener Staatsoper has announced that bass René Pape will not be appearing in the role of Gurnemanz in the run of Wagner’s “Parsifal.” As a result, German bass Georg Zeppenfeld will take over the role. Zeppenfeld joins a cast that includes Wolfgang Koch, Anja Kampe, Nikolay Sidorenko, Artyom Wasnetsov, Carlos Osuna, Erik Van Heyningen, Patricia Nolz, {…}
(Credit: Royal Opera House official website) The Royal Opera House has announced multiple cast changes for its upcoming productions of Puccini’s “Tosca,” Wagner’s “Lohengrin,” and Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale.” Per an official press release, Oksana Lyniv will conduct the full run of Tosca in 2021, replacing Francesco Ivan Ciampa who was due to conduct the performances on Dec. 11, 14 & {…}
(Credit: Bernd Uhlig) The Deutsche Oper Berlin has announced its upcoming performances of Wagner’s iconic “Der Ring des Nibelungen.” Wagner’s tetralogy will star number of renowned Wagnerian singers, including Brandon Jovanovich as Siegmund; Elisabeth Teige as Sieglinde; Nina Stemme in the role of Brünnhilde; Clay Hilley as Siegfried; Derek Welton as Wotan in “Das Rheingold”; Iain Paterson as Wotan/Der Wanderer; {…}
(Credit: Klaus Frahm) The Deutsche Oper Berlin has announced multiple cast changes for Wagner’s “Der Ring des Nibelungen.” For the performances of “Die Walküre” on Oct. 29, Nov. 10 & 17, 2021, Iain Paterson will replace John Lundgren in the role of Wotan. Paterson joins a cast that includes Brandon Jovanovich as Siegmund, Elisabeth Teige as Sieglinde, Tobias Kehrer as {…}
Naxos has recently released the new production of Robert Carsen’s “I Pagliacci/Cavalleria Rusticana,” which opened the 2019/20 season at the Dutch National Opera. It is a new development, as historically it has been Opus Arte which release Amsterdam’s operatic DVDs. Opus Arte always included interesting footage from rehearsals and interviews with the cast and creative team in their DVDs. Naxos {…}
San Francisco Opera has announced its streams for the month of August 2021. The company will stream two operas this month, including an Italian classic as well as an iconic German masterpiece. All performances can be watched directly on the company’s official website. First up will be a stream of a 2015 staging of Wagner’s “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.” The {…}
(Credit: Oxana Ivleva) The Verbier Festival is set to present a concert performance of Puccini’s “La Fanciulla del West” on July 20, 2021. The showcase will star Maria Bayankina in the role of Minnie. She will be joined by Brandon Jovanovich as Dick Johnson and Ambrogio Maestri as Jack Rance. Other cast members in the performance will include Germán E. {…}
(Credits: Bettina Stöß / Bernd Uhlig) The Deutsche Oper Berlin has announced all the premieres of its 2021-22 season. Here is a look. The “Best of Carmen” concert will spotlight Valeriia Savinskaia, Arianna Manganello, Elena Tsallagova, Matthew Newlin, Joel Allison, and Ève-Maud Hubeaux in the title role. Daniel Carter conducts a production by Silke Sense. Performance dates: Aug. 21 – {…}
The Boston Symphony Orchestra has announced its 2021-22 season. For the purposes of this article, we will only focus on operatic or vocal performances. The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Players will perform alongside soprano Sophia Burgos, baritone John Brancy, and pianist Alessio Bax in a concert featuring music by Dvorák, Bartók, and Gandolfi. Performance Date: Jan. 23, 2022 Conductor Jakub Hrusa {…}