(Photo: Patrick Redmond) Since its inception in 2018, Irish National Opera has made remarkable progress with a series of innovative and imaginative productions that have entertained audiences from both home and abroad, garnering praise from the national and international media for the variety and quality of its output. Now, in its seventh season, the company decided to stage four performances {…}
(Photo: Neil Harrison) Since Cameron Menzies took on the position of artistic director of Northern Ireland Opera in 2020, the company has undergone something of a Renaissance. Although working on a slim budget, enough to fund only one main stage production each season, its imaginative and innovative approach has led to it staging a stream of high-quality short works, which {…}
(Photo: Clive Barda) In 1943, Italy was a country wracked by the turmoil of war. Not only had the allied armies invaded, but internecine conflict had broken out amongst the Italian people. Communities and families were against each other as the patriots and fascists fought for control. The situation was depicted in Alberto Moravia’s 1957 novel “La Ciociara,” which later {…}
(Photo: Padraig Grant) The second of Wexford Festival’s pocket operas, Opera Beag, was a presentation of Donizetti’s opéra-comique “La Fille du régiment.” Operating on a low-budget and using only piano accompaniment, director Heather Hadrill was under no illusions of the difficulties involved. In her program notes, she stated “The challenge of pocket operas is to give as full a sense {…}
(Photo: Hugh O’Conor) With the closure of the theatres, opera companies have turned to streaming their productions. However, with all the goodwill in the world, they tend to fall into the category of second-hand, second-rate experiences. In fact, many would argue that watching an opera on the screen in the comfort of your own home does not work at all. {…}
Irish National Opera has announced the continuation of its season with “20 Shots of Opera,” which will be filmed and made available on Dec. 17, 2020. The work features 20 compact operas from 20 Ireland-based composers including Gerald Barry, Éna Brennan, Irene Buckley, Linda Buckley, Robert Coleman, David Coonan, Alex Dowling, Peter Fahey, Michael Gallen, Andrew Hamilton, Jenn Kirby, Conor {…}