(Photo credit: Glyndebourne’s own official trailer highlights its festival as “No Ordinary Opera”. Certainly, the staging for “Tristan und Isolde” is far from ordinary, courtesy of a visually entrancing setting by Ronald Aeschlimann. The performers are basically encased in an elliptical vortex-type form of concentric circles, which I interpreted to be a depiction of some portal-like presence intended to illustrate {…}
Photo: © Glyndebourne Productions Ltd. Photo: Tristram Kenton Normally, ‘heritage’ productions make me nervous. The established stagings summon to mind lumbering Zeffirelli-esque spectacles and unwieldy, moth-eaten costumes. Opera houses resting on their artistic laurels, unwilling take artistic risks. The ingrained conservatism in the opera business that could even prove fatal for the art form. But, Peter Hall’s production of Benjamin {…}
(Credits: LA Opera official website / Jan Windszus Photography / Lena Kern / Mark Janssen / Georg Schlosser / In Art Management official website) The Komische Oper Berlin has announced its 2021-22 season. Here is a look at the operatic and vocal performances. Opera – Premieres Enescu’s rarely performed masterwork “Œdipe” opens the season. The opera features Jens Larsen, Joachim {…}
(Credit: Bayerische Staatsoper official website) The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced the cancellation of its performance of Richard Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier” on April 3, and a presentations of Verdi’s “La Traviata” on April 9, 11 & 15, 2021. Per an official statement on the company’s website, the opera house was forced to cancel the performances due to the worsened epidemiological situation {…}
(Credits: LA Opera official website / Peter Knutson) The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced the cancelation of its run of Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” between March 20 & 26, and the presentations of Verdi’s “Les Vêpres siciliennes” on April 5, 10 & 13, 2021. The opera house stated that the performances could not be presented due to the worsening of the {…}
Audiences who crave seeing opera’s biggest stars on the small screen will have a lot to enjoy. From a Jonas Kaufmann triumph at the Met to a new role for Marlis Petersen and a video showcase for Kristine Opolais, this week’s selection should certainly fulfill a lot of operatic wishes. But there are also two world premieres – one in {…}
(Credits: Yiorgos Mavropoulos/Jiyang Chen) The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced that it will livestream the premiere of Richard Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier” on March 21, 2021. Soprano Marlis Petersen will debut in the role of Die Feldmarschallin alongside Christof Fischesser who will perform the role of Baron Ochs and Samantha Hankey who will sing the role of Octavian. The performance will also {…}
(Credits: Gregor Hohenberg/Sony / Chris Singer / Rebecca Fay / Artists Management Zürich official website) The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced the full slate for its 2020-21 free streaming season. Here is the look. Walter Braunfels’ “Die Vögel” will feature Wolfgang Koch, Günter Papendell, Caroline Wettergreen, Emily Pogorelc, Yajie Zhang, Eliza Boom, Bálint Szabó, Theodore Platt, George Vîrban, Charles Workman, and {…}
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra has announced its 2019-20 season. For the purposes of this article, we will focus on vocal performances. Kicking off the 2019-20 season is “James Gaffigan Leads Debussy and Roussel,“ to be held in the Royal Concert Hall’s Large Hall. James Gaffigan will conduct the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in an evening of French works of exotic influence. {…}