The Lyric Opera of Orange County will present Ethel Smyth’s “Fête Galante” at the Chance Theater in Anaheim, California, March 8 – 10, 2024. This production starring Jessica Mammey, Christopher Walters, and Julia Behbudov will be the West Coast premiere of the opera with a live orchestra. Valerie Langfield’s orchestration also includes the addition of Smyth’s song cycle for mezzo-soprano. {…}
(© Richard Hubert Smith) Ethel Smyth’s opera “The Wreckers” opened the Glyndebourne Festival Opera last weekend, receiving its first-ever performance in the original French – libretto by Henry Brewster – and with many savage cuts restored. Its journey has been a long one: Smyth was repeatedly thwarted by war, misogynistic attitudes, musical conservatism, and meddling conductors. For some context – {…}
Ethel Smyth was a major figure of her time. By the time she was 75 in 1934, she was honored with a festival of her music. During the final performance, at Albert Hall, she watched as Sir Thomas Beecham, one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century, led her Mass before an enthused public. She was also a renowned {…}