Cape Town Opera has announced that soprano Khayakazi Madlala has joined the company as a Judith Neilson Young Artist. Earlier this year, Madlala made her debut as the High Priestess in Verdi’s “Aida” at the Royal Opera House in London. She will reprise the role in the upcoming Cape Town Opera production of “Aida,” which opens on May 23. The {…}
Cape Town Opera presents a bite-sized opera through the 40-minute film, “A Pocket Magic Flute.” The film geared towards children is an educational opera project by Pocket Opera that reimagines Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” in Africa. “A Pocket Magic Flute”combines acting, animation, and opera. Music for the project came from African-American performers at Pocket Opera, alongside orchestral tracks by young {…}
(Photo credit: Allegra Bernacchioni) Cape Town Opera, in collaboration with Opera UCT, has officially announced its second edition of “SHORTS: A Festival of Short Operas.” Audiences can expect four one-act operas to take place throughout the festival, as well as a Q & A, a workshop performance of a new opera, and opera film screenings. Allegra Bernacchioni leads production design {…}
Cape Town Opera’s Foundation Studio is off to an exciting start in the 2025 season. In early Jan., Cape Town Opera began the new year with its Bel Canto Boot Camp. Vocal coach Derrick Goff led the Boot Camp, which took online and in-person. Sessions covered a variety of essential topics designed to elevate vocal mastery. The company’s Foundation Studio {…}
Cape Town Opera has announced its 2025 season. The season opens with Shorts: A Festival of Pocket Operas. It’s the second edition of five captivating, bite-sized operas in under an hour. The operas will include Cape Town favorites William Berger and Siphamandla Moyake, joined by Cape Town Opera House Soloists and Young Artists. Musical direction by Jan Hugo, Jeremy Silver, {…}
Cape Town Opera’s “Porgy and Bess” created an extraordinary cultural confluence in its Chinese premiere at the Poly Theatre. Closing the 27th Beijing Music Festival on 12 October 2024, this production brings together 39 singers and 75 musicians as Gershwin’s South Carolina masterpiece, reimagined through South African artistry, finds new resonance on the Beijing stage. It arrives at a {…}
Cape Town Opera has named Nonhlanhla Yende to the position of House Soloist. The mezzo-soprano has been coordinator and facilitator for the company’s Youth Development and Education Department for three years. She joined the Cape Town Opera Studio in 2010 and has performed at Hamer Hall in Melbourne and in the Teatro Colón’s “Porgy and Bess.” With Cape Town Opera, {…}
In a first-time collaboration, Cape Town Opera will present David Kramer’s new piece “Orpheus McAdoo.” Conroy Scott leads the cast in the title role. Cape Town Opera Brittany Smith, Jody Abrahams, Dean Balie, Alexis Petersen, Elton Landrew, Eldon van der Merwe, and Natalie Robbie are also among the cast. The story revolves around the African-American choir known as The Virginia Jubilee {…}
(Image by Annène van Eeden) Cape Town Opera is set to present “Horizons” on Sept. 28, 2024 at Toyota Stellenbosh Woordfees. The program, which will spotlight South African music by Michael Moerane, Péter Louis van Dijk, Mzilikazi Khumalo, Clare Loveday, Mpumelelo Manyathi and Pieter Bezuidenhout, will be headlined by the Cape Town Opera Chorus, conducted by José Dias. “This music {…}
Cape Town Opera is set to present “Lucia di Lammermoor” at Artscape on June 14-23, 2024 before it heads to the Joberg Theatre on July 25, 2024. The famed Donizetti work will star Brittany Smith as Lucia, Lukhanyo Moyake as Edgardo, and Conroy Scott as Enrico. Other cast members include CTO Judith Neilson Young Artists Asisipho Petu and Julia Portela {…}
Cape Town Opera has announced that three of its soloists were prize winners at the Annual Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards. At the close of the ceremony on March 17, 2024, soprano Nobulumko Mngxekeza took home the Best Performance in an Opera prize for her work in “Tosca.” Meanwhile, Lukhanyo Moyake was awarded for Best Performance in an Opera for {…}