(Credit: Agathe-Poupeney) This review compiles performances attended on Oct 15, 18 and Nov. 5. When conductor Simone Young entered the stage to be applauded after her performance in Paris Opéra’s new production of “Salome,” some incipient voices started to boo her. The booers quickly realized their error; they actually wanted to hoot the staging team commanded by Lydia Steier. It {…}
The Opéra Orchestre national Montpellier Occitanie has announced its 2022-23 season. Opera Ainārs Rubiķis conducts Verdi’s “Aida” in a production by Annabel Arden. The opera stars Sunyoung Seo, Ketevan Kemoklidze, Amadi Lagha, Leon Kim, and Jacques Greg-Belobo. Performance Dates: Sept. 30-Oct. 4, 2022 Noëlle Gény leads “Bach et le sacré.” Performance Date: Oct. 16, 2022 Noëlle Gény conducts “Musiques sacrées” Performance Date: Dec. 11, 2022 {…}
The Santa Fe Opera has announced its 2023 season and revealed its 19th world premiere slated for 2024. The company noted that in 2024, the company has commissioned a new opera by two of America’s most exciting talents, composer Gregory Spears and former US Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize-winner Tracy K. Smith titled “The Righteous.” The 2023 Season The Santa Fe Opera’s 66th Festival {…}
(© photo : Eléna Bauer/OnP) FRA Cinéma, the exclusive cinema distributor for the Paris Opera, has announced its 2022-23 slate, which will feature four operas and two ballets. The 11th season of the collaboration will kick off with “I Capuleti e I Montecchi” from the Opéra Bastille. The opera, which is conducted by Speranza Scappucci will be directed by Robert {…}
The Berliner Philharmoniker has announced its 2022-23 season featuring some of the greatest singers in the world. Here is a look at the vocal highlights of the season. Georg Nigl, Dirk Rothbrust and Vilde Frang are the soloists in the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and Vladimir Jurowski’s concert. The program includes music by Iannis Xenakis, Béla Bartók, and Gustav Mahler. Performance Date: {…}
The Festspielhaus Baden-Baden has announced its 2023 Easter Festival Baden-Baden. The festival will present a production of R. Strauss’ “Die Frau ohne Schatten” directed by Lydia Steier. The production will star Clay Hilley, Elza van den Heever, Michaela Schuster, Wolfgang Koch, and Iréne Theorin. Kirill Petrenko will lead the Berliner Philharmoniker. Performance Dates: April 1-9, 2023 Kirill Petrenko conducts Diana {…}
(Credit: Ken Howard) This is a review of the March 11th, 2022 performance, the Opening night of this production’s 3rd revival since 2004. “Rodelinda: Regina De’Longobardi” is old, nearly 300-years old, which is advanced in age even by operatic standards. That being said, following the rise of the early music movement of the 20th century, scholars and performers alike have {…}
The Metropolitan Opera has announced “A Concert for Ukraine” on March 14, 2022. The concert is set to be conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin leading the Met Orchestra and Chorus. The special concert will offer solidarity for Ukrainian citizens under attack, with all ticket sales and proceeds supporting relief efforts in the country. In a statement, Met General Manager Peter {…}
OPERA NEWS has announced the recipients of its 2022 Awards. The 2022 recipients include international opera stars Denyce Graves, Quinn Kelsey, and Elza van den Heever. All three have collectively graced the greatest opera stages around the world and have built renowned careers at the Met Opera. The Awards Gala is scheduled for April 3, 2022 at the Plaza Hotel {…}
(Credit: Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera) The talisman of Beethoven’s “Fidelio” is “Freiheit (freedom).” Though “Fidelio” is Beethoven’s only opera, it was not his only “cri de coeur” for liberty as the conclusion of his Ninth Symphony showed. San Francisco Opera’s production offered that message for today’s world. “Freiheit” equals Liberty. “Freiheit” equals independence, both personal and political. And “Freiheit” equals {…}
Set design by Alexander V. Nichols Virtual tickets for San Francisco Opera’s new production of Beethoven’s “Fidelio” are now on sale. The fresh staging by Matthew Ozawa is set to open on Oct. 14, 2021. SFO’s first-ever virtual option enables audiences from around the world to experience Beethoven’s only opera from the comfort of their homes. Audiences will have three {…}