On July 15, Mezzo.TV is set to broadcast Donizetti’s “Lucrezia Borgia” from the Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège. The recording, which was made on April 18, 2026, was directed by Frédéric Caillierez. Giampaolo Bisanti conducts the production by Jean-Louis Grinda. Jessica Pratt stars in the title role of Lucrezia Borgia alongside Dmitry Korchak as Gennaro, Marko Mimica as Alfonso D’Este, and Julie {…}
The Teatro Verdi di Trieste has announced its 2026-27 season. Wagner’s “Lohengrin” will open the season in a production by Andrea Bernard and Enrico Calesso. Evgeny Stravinsky, Dmitry Korchak, David Danholt, Gabriela Scherer, Nina Beau, Martin Gandner, Lars Fosser, and Elena Batoukova-Kerl. Performance Dates: Nov. 12-33, 2026 Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” will be conducted by Enrico Calesso and directed by Pier Luigi {…}
The Teatro Regio di Torino has announced its 2026-27 season. The season opens with Leoncavallo’s “Pagliacci” and Mascagni’s “Cavalleria Rusticana” with Francesco Micheli directing Leoncavallo and Daniele Menghini directing Mascagni. Leoncavallo’s work will star Carolina Lopez Moreno, Maria Teresa Leva, Martin Muehle, Carlo Ventre, Gregory Kunde, Ariun Ganbaatar, Fabián Veloz, Matteo Mezzaro, Matteo Falcier, Joshua Hopkins, and Rodion Pogossov while {…}
(Photo: Roberto Ricci) I first heard Vasilisa Berzhanskaya as Rosina in a 2022 Florence production of “Il barbiere di Siviglia.” For the first time, I wasn’t sure if it was the standard version with a mezzo Rosina, or the less frequently performed soprano version. While the timbre was distinctly mezzo, the dazzling coloratura was more soprano than mezzo. Fast forward {…}
Update: The Vienna State Opera announced that Mr. Korchak, in a lengthy statement, asserted that he had no knowledge of the Russian military’s participation or the honoring of officers at the 2024 Petrovsky Ball. He also affirmed that he had never made any political statements. Given this, a termination of his contract by the Vienna State Opera is not legally {…}
The Salzburg Festival has announced its 2026 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Franck Ollu conducts Pascal Dusapin and Rita de Letteriis’s “Passion” starring Sarah Aristidou, Georg Nigl, and Schola Heidelberg. Performance Date: July 23, 2026 Asmik Grigorian stars as Bizet’s “Carmen” alongside Jonathan Tetelman, Kristina Mkhitaryan, and Davide Luciano. Teodor Currentzis conducts the production by Gabriela {…}
The Salzburg Whitsun Festival has announced its 2026 season themed “Bon Voyage.” Opera Rossini’s “Il Viaggio a Reims” will be conducted by Gianluca Capuano and directed by Barrie Kosky. The ensemble cast will include Cecilia Bartoli, Marina Viotti, Mélissa Petit, Tara Erraught, Edgardo Rocha, Dmitry Korchak, Ildebrando D’Arcangelo, Florian Sempey, Misha Kiria, Peter Kellner, Giovanni Romeo, Helena Rasker, Rodolphe Briand, {…}
(Credit: Fabrizio Sansoni) On Nov. 27, Rai 5 will present the opening night of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma’s 2025-2026 season. The season will open with Wagner’s “Lohengrin,” which returns to the Rome stage after a 50-year absence. The work will be transmitted on Rai Cultura and Rai 5 and will be conducted by Music Director Michele Mariotti and directed {…}
(Credit: Ph. Brescia e Amisano) After the recurrent “Rigoletto” production by Gilbert Deflo, which has been revived more than ten times since its debut in 1994, the Teatro alla Scala commissioned Mario Martone in 2022 to create a new staging of Verdi’s classic. The result was a contemporary and technologically rich interpretation of the opera, and the theater decided to {…}
The Teatro Massimo Bellini in Catania has announced its 2025-26 season. Opera Fabrizio Maria Carminati conducts Verid’s “Aida” in a production by Marco Vinco. The production will star Oksana Dyka and Valentina Boi in the title role alongside Jorge de León, Aleksandrs Antonenko, Nino Surguladze, Irene Savignano, Franco Vassallo, Alberto Gazale, Insung Sim, and Simón Orfila. Performance Dates: Jan. 20-28, {…}
(Photo: Amati Bacciardi) This summer’s Rossini Opera Festival’s imaginative and fast-moving production of the composer’s 1813 comic opera, “L’Italiana in Algeri,” hit the mark in so many ways: it was funny, colorful and energetic; the cast were fully engaged with their characters, which they hammed up brilliantly for laughs; the underlying dynamics of the narrative were expertly handled by the {…}