(Credit: Ken Howard / Met Opera) The Met Opera’s Live in HD series for the 2019-20 season continues this Saturday, Feb. 1, 2019 with a transmission of the Gershwins’ “Porgy and Bess.” The broadcast, which kicks off 12:55 p.m. Eastern time and is set to end before 5 p.m. local time. It will star Angel Blue and Eric Owens in {…}
(Credit: Courtesy of San Francisco Opera) The San Francisco Opera has announced its 2020-21 season featuring a number of new productions and stars. Here is a look. Productions The first production of the season will be Beethoven’s “Fidelio” celebrating the composer’s 250th anniversary. The new production will be directed by Matthew Ozawa with Music Director Designate Eun Sun Kim conducting {…}
There will be two important CD releases this week, one from a legendary artists and a second from a historical opening night performance. Here is a look. Farinelli Cecilia Bartoli celebrates over three decades on the Decca Classics label with her latest album commemorating the life and career of the most famous opera singer of the 18th century: the castrato {…}
On November 24, 2019, audiences gathered at the Metropolitan Opera to pay tribute to the life and career of Jessye Norman. The event comprised of musical performances, video highlights of Jessye’s performances, and statements from her family, friends, and colleagues. First among these highlights were two clips of Norman singing “Amazing Grace,” from her performances at the 1997 Presidential Inauguration {…}
The Metropolitan Opera has announced that it will be hosting a celebration in honor of legendary soprano Jessye Norman on Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019. Norman passed away on Sept. 30, 2019. The event, which will be open to the public, will feature perforamcnes from leading artists as including J’Nai Bridges, Lise Davidsen, Leah Hawkins, Latonia Moore, and Eric Owens. There {…}
While the environment outside the Met Opera on opening night was rather subdued in comparison to previous years, there could be no denying the environment inside of the sold-out house. Everywhere you turned, the opera on hand was a major topic of conversation with great excitement over what it might bring. The Gershwin classic, “Porgy and Bess,” hasn’t been at {…}
(Photo by Paola Kudacki/Metropolitan Opera) The Metropolitan Opera will open its 2019-20 season with a new production of “Porgy and Bess.” The showcase on Sept. 23, 2019 will be the 55th in the company’s history and by the end of the run, the company will be inching toward 70 total performances of the opera. As we prepare to go forward {…}
The 2019-20 season is about to start with numerous new productions, revivals and world premieres. Like we did with the International houses, OperaWire has selected the 10 Must-See productions that you cannot miss this fall at the North American companies. 10. Frida – Atlanta Opera, Georgia Jorge Parodi conducts the popular work by Robert Xavier Rodriguez with Catalina Cuervo, who brings {…}
The Metropolitan Opera’s first Ring Cycle of the 2018-19 season came to a glorious end with “Götterdämmerung” in a production featuring a tremendous cast. In some ways, this might have been the most satisfying evening of the entire cycle, with a luxurious cast of true singing actors against a production that, at times, had something to say. A Hero Above {…}
This week two world premieres are set to be released. One comes from a groundbreaking TV opera series and another comes from a lost opera. Check out what we think you should buy this week. Le dernier sorcier One hundred and fifty years after its composition, a lost opera is recovered and a vanished voice restored. Pauline García Viardot’s lost {…}
The Metropolitan Opera revealed its 2019-20 season on Wednesday afternoon. Among the major announcements were the company’s schedule for its ever-popular Live in HD slate. Here is a look at the list of performances that will be broadcast to audiences around the world. Worthy of note is that of the 10 productions set to screen in cinemas, three will be {…}