Christine Goerke has canceled tonight’s performance of “Elektra.” The Metropolitan Opera announced via Twitter that the due to illness she would not be able to sing. As a result, Sabine Hogrefe will take on the title role and make her Met debut. Hogrefe is well known for her interpretation of Elektra, which she has performed in Detmold. She is well known {…}
Richard Strauss’ “Elektra” returned to the Metropolitan Opera on Thursday, March 1, 2018, in a hotly anticipated revival of Patrice Chéreau’s production. Last time out, the production was a smash hit, its stripped-down sets allowing for the audience to focus on the violent drama put before us. It continues to work in that vein, though its overall stillness might not {…}
Simon Estes, born on March 2, 1938, did not have an easy career path. While the bass-baritone succeeded in Europe in his early years, the United States didn’t take too well to him. He was only accepted for minor roles at most prominent theaters and it wasn’t until 1981, 16 years after his professional debut, that the Metropolitan Opera offered {…}
When Strauss’ “Elektra” returns to the stage on Thursday, March 1 at the Metropolitan Opera, it will take part 109th performance with the company. The role is often considered one of the most challenging in the repertoire, if not the most difficult. The soprano is tasked with a lengthy evening with barely any rest and no intermission to aid her {…}
The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey forced the Houston Grand Opera out of its regular space in the Wortham Theater Center and into a temporary one, dubbed HGO Resilience Theater inside the cavernous George Brown Convention Center in downtown. Experiencing a performance in such an unusual setting wasn’t a unique experience for me after seeing a production of “Tannhauser” inside a {…}
First making its premiere on Jan. 25, 1909, “Elektra” is a one-act retelling of the Ancient Greek play written by Sophocles. It is set a few short years after the Trojan War and minimizes certain events for the sake of fixating on Elektra’s quest for revenge upon her mother Clytemnestra. In regards to theme and musicality, “Elektra” bears much resemblance to {…}
The Canadian Opera Company has announced its 2018-19 season, which will feature six operas. Every opera is undeniably the sum of all its parts, but there is certainly a lot to be said about how one performer can become the big story for his or her upcoming showcase. Here is a look at the six exciting singers to keep an {…}
San Francisco Opera’s “Elektra” is a powerhouse! From the minute the curtain rises on the “Museum Elektra,” filled with the artifacts of the Greek age and styled with an array of modern visitors, complete with cell phones and baseball caps, one strange dark-haired woman skulking around from this case to that, defying the Guards who monitor the whole scene until {…}
Christine Goerke is considered one of today’s most important dramatic sopranos, performing the most challenging music in the repertoire. Her emergence as the next great Brünnhilde has audiences excited, especially since she is slated to take it on all over the country. But it wasn’t always that way as she began her career with lyric roles and the switch only came {…}
From start to finish, Strauss’s “Elektra” pulls us into the dark night of the soul and its tormented landscape. There Electra does with us what she does to herself – rages, grieves, strains, plots and plans, and violates any chance she has for peace of mind or human freedom. If she thinks that such a prospect will grant her ease, {…}
Eric Owens will be replacing Thomas Hampson as Oreste in the Verbier Festival 2017’s performance of “Elektra” on July 27, 2017. Hampson was originally slated to perform the role when the cast was originally announced but has since been replaced by Owens, who has sung the role prominently around the world. He was widely praised for his portrayal at the {…}