Jennifer Johnston & Roderick Williams Lead Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2020 Fall Performances

(Credits: Gerard Collett / Groves Artists official website) The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic has announced a series of October and November performances. Fourteen socially-distanced concerts will take place from Oct. 1 to Nov. 4, 2020. For the purpose of this article, we will focus only on vocal works. Baritone Roderick Williams will perform a program that includes works by Finzi, Ireland, {…}

Jun 19, 2020

little OPERA theater of ny Launches Streaming of Past Productions, Including Chevalier de Saint-George’s ‘L’Amant Anonyme’

The little OPERA theatre of ny is set to stream several highlights from its past productions. Among the operas that will be spotlighted are “Owen Wingrave,” “Piramo e Tisbe,” “L’Amant Anonyme,” and “Slow Dusk & Markheim.” “Owen Wingrave,” performed in May 2019, features Robert Balonek, Michael Weyandt, Bernard Holcolm, Daniel Curran, Katherin Pracht, Augusta Caso, Daniel Klein, Matthew Curran, Janice {…}

Jun 19, 2020

Aldeburgh Festival to Stream Iconic Production of ‘Peter Grimes’ on BBC iPlayer

(Credit: Robert Workman) The Aldeburgh Festival is set to present a 2013 production of Britten’s “Peter Grimes” on BBC iPlayer. The production stars Alan Oke in the title role with Giselle Allen as Ellen Orford. The work was conducted by Steuart Bedford. The performance also featured the Britten-Pears Orchestra and the choruses of Opera North and Guildhall School of Music {…}

Jan 31, 2020

Royal College Of Music Opera Studio to Present French Triple Bill

(Image Source: Royal College of Music Facebook page) This season, the RCM Opera Studio will showcase a triple bill of French-language operas from Britten, Debussy and Ravel. The first work to be presented is the Britten’s contemplative song cycle “Les Illuminations” that features settings of Arthur Rimbaud’s poetry with a soprano soloist performing alongside string orchestra. RCM Opera Studio will {…}

Jan 17, 2020

American Director Ted Huffman To Stage ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ At Deutsche Oper Berlin

(Credit: Deutsche Oper Berlin/Leo Seidel) American Director Ted Huffman will stage the Benjamin Britten’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. In this production of the masterwork at the largest Berlin’s opera house, Huffman brings a great deal of memories of Provincetown on Cape Cod. “I think of Provincetown as being akin to the forest in ‘A Midsummer {…}

Dec 2, 2019

Royal Opera House 2019-20 Review: Death in Venice

(Credit: Catherine Ashmore) David McVicar’s new production of Britten’s late masterpiece “Death in Venice” is a brooding and elusive meditation on the tribulations of aging creativity and its relationship to death and desire. Peter Pears confided that “Ben is writing an evil opera, and it is killing him,” which no doubt prompts cured autobiographical readings of the work. But here {…}

Nov 1, 2019

Concerts at Saint Thomas Unveil Holiday Programs For 2019

Concerts at Saint Thomas is set to celebrate the holiday season with holiday favorites on Dec. 10, 12, and 19 2019. The first two performances are set to showcase Handel’s famed “Messiah” alongside New York Baroque Incorporated. The performance will be conducted by Saint Thomas Organist and Director of Music, Jeremy Filsell, with soprano Sherezade Panthanki, alto Roger Isaacs, tenor {…}

Oct 8, 2019

Wiener Staatsoper 2019-20 Review: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

After 57 years, the Vienna State Opera brought Benjamin Britten’s masterwork “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” back into its repertoire. The opera had its world premiere at the Aldeburgh Festival on June 11, 1960, with the Vienna State Opera showcasing the work for the first time in 1962. This chronology implies that the opera house was quick to stage Britten’s masterwork {…}

Sep 30, 2019

Vienna State Opera To Live Stream ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’

On Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019, the Vienna State Opera will live stream Benjamin Britten’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” The performance will be led by conductor Simone Young and will star Lawrence Zazzo, Erin Morley, Théo Touvet, Peter Kellner, Szilvia Vörös, Josh Lovell, Rafael Fingerlos, Rachel Frenkel, Valentina Naforniţa, Peter Rose, and Benjamin Hulett. The stream kicks off at 7 p.m. {…}

Sep 11, 2019

San Francisco Opera 2019-20 Review: Billy Budd

(Credit: Cory Weaver / San Francisco Opera) Billy Budd, Foretopman, is the center of the conflict between evil and good, dark and light, vulnerable and powerful in Benjamin Britten’s masterpiece “Billy Budd.” Picking this opera for the second night opening of San Francisco’s 97th season was a masterful choice. Everything – the music, drama, ethical conflict, suspenseful, challenging, rewarding – {…}

Aug 9, 2019

John Chest & Christian Van Horn Headline San Francisco Opera’s ‘Billy Budd’

(Credit: Alastair Muir/Glyndebourne Productions Ltd.) The San Francisco Opera is set to present Britten’s “Billy Budd” to open the 2019-20 season. The work returns to the company after a 15-year absence in Michael Grandage’s production, which was unveiled at the Glyndebourne Festival. The opera is set to star John Chest in the title role in his company debut alongside William {…}

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