The Teatro alla Scala has announced a new cast change for its production of “Cavalleria Rusticana.” The company said, “Due to sudden illness, Elīna Garanča has to withdraw from the performance of ‘Cavalleria Rusticana’ on April 28. The Theater thanks Saioa Hernández who will replace her in the role of Santuzza.” This is the second performance Hernández steps into following {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Philippe Jordan conducts Verdi’s “Don Carlo” in a new production by Kirill Serebrennikov. The production stars Asmik Grigorian, Roberto Tagliavini, Joshua Guerrero, Étienne Dupuis, Eve-Maud Hubeaux, and Dmitry Ulyanov. The second cast will include Nicole Car, Elīna Garanča, and Vitalij Kowaljow. Performance Dates: Sept. 26, 2024-March 23, 2025 György Kurtág’s “Fin {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has announced a cast change for its production of “Cavalleria Rusticana.” The company said, “Due to sudden illness, Elīna Garanča has to withdraw from the performance of Cavalleria Rusticana on April 26. The Theater thanks Saioa Hernández who will replace her in the role of Santuzza.” Hernández, who was already slated to perform on April 30, {…}
The Teatro alla Scala is set to stream Mario Martone’s production of “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci.” The operas will be streamed on April 26 on La Scala TV at 7:45 CEST in HD and will be on demand through May 3, 2024. Mascagni’s work will star Elīna Garanča, Francesca Di Sauro, Brian Jagde, Roman Burdenko, and Elena Zilio while Leoncavallo’s {…}
The Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Josep Pons conducts Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” with Alexei Botnarciuc, Daniel Kirch, Sara Jakubiak, Ángeles Blancas, and Pavel Černoch. Àlex Ollé conducts. Performance Date: Sept. 25-Oct. 7, 2024 Maria Agresta and Saioa Hernández star in Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” with Artur Ruciński, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Brian {…}
The Teatro Real de Madrid has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Nicola Luisotti and Andrés Salado conduct Cilea’s “Adriana Lecouvreur” in David McVicar’s production. The production will star Ermonela Jaho, Maria Agresta, Brian Jagde, Matthew Polenzani, Elīna Garanča, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Nicola Alaimo, and Manel Esteve. Performance Dates: Sept. 23-Oct. 11, 2024 Charpentier’s “David et Jonathas” will be performed in concert with Petr Nekoranec, Gwendoline Blondeel, Jean-Christophe {…}
The CD release of “Parsifal” under Philippe Jordan is not exactly news. The production dates from the 2021 season of the Vienna State Opera when the gritty, and no less controversial, staging of Kirill Serebrennikov received widespread attention. It was a secular “Parsifal,” highly politicized, and more akin to the oppressive climate of the Soviet Gulag than the Romantic exclusivity {…}
The Opéra de Paris has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Verdi’s “Falstaff” opens the season with a cast that includes Ambrogio Maestri, Olivia Boen, Marie-Andrée Bouchard-Lesieur, Andrei Kymach, Gregory Bonfatti, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Iván Ayón-Rivas, and Federica Guida. Michael Schønwandt conducts the production by Dominique Pitoiset. Performance Dates: Sept. 10-30, 2024 Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” will star Eleonora Buratto, Elena Stikhina, Aude {…}
Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week, audiences will get to hear the latest from four of the world’s great divas in very different works. There are two rare bel canto works worth checking out as well. Richard Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben/Gustav Mahler’s Rückert-Lieder The Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal {…}
The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Tobias Krazter directs a new production of Wagner’s “Das Rheingold” with Nicholas Brownlee, Milan Siljanov, Sean Panikkar, Markus Brück, Matthias Klink, Matthew Rose, Timo Riihonen, Ekaterina Gubanova, Mirjam Mesak, and Wiebke Lehmkuhl. Vladimir Jurowski conducts. Performance Dates: Oct. 27, 2024-July 31, 2025 Damiano Michieletto directs Donizetti’s “La Fille du Régiment” with {…}
The Wiener Konzerthaus has named Elīna Garanča an honorary member of the institution. The famed concert hall announced the news via a social media post in which it showcased the mezzo’s name being engraved into the list of honorary members. Garanča joins a list of artists that includes Martha Argerich, Teodor Currentzis, Wynton Marsalis, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, and Martin {…}