“We want to make this music—these composers—part of the standard repertoire. Events like this shouldn’t be rare,” stated soprano Nicole Leone in a recent interview with OperaWire. Leone’s simple statement refers to the challenge of increasing the prominence of female composers in music programming, and she is doing her part. Together with Randi Marrazzo, her voice teacher from Temple University, {…}
On Friday, April 5, 2019, Bare Opera kicked off their production of Astor Piazzolla’s “Maria de Buenos Aires.” Staged in The Bellewether of New York City, the venue, along with director Malena Dayen’s approach, supported by strong choreography from Troy Ogilvie, resulted in an immersive musical experience. The striking and surreal events of Maria’s dramatic journey are conveyed through movement {…}
The New Camerata Opera has revealed that it will be working with “A Modern Reveal: Songs and Stories of Women Composers” to present “Leading Ladies Liberated.” The performance, slated for May 3, 2019, at 7 p.m., will take place at the Flea Theater in New York. The concert is set to feature music by Isabella Colbran, Maria Malibran, and Pauline {…}
On Feb. 19, 2019, a number of opera companies in Buenos Aires came together to present a performance of arias by Puccini and announce collaborations together throughout 2019. The showcase featured such companies as Magna Lírica and its director Mariana Carnovali; Ensamble Lírico Orquesta and its leader Cecilia Layseca; Compañía Lírica Verdi and its manager Adriana Segal; and Espacio Victorium, {…}
The New Amsterdam Opera has announced that it will host a surprise salon event to preview its upcoming concert performance of Massenet’s “Hériodade.” The event is set for March 30, 2019 at a surprise Manhattan location and will be guest hosted by Ken Benson. The showcase will feature performances from the opera’s cover artists, which include Rachelle Pike, Sara Pearson, {…}
A few years ago, four women put their heads together and decided that they wanted to create an opera company. The result was a company, Bare Opera, that in three years has presented a number of unique concerts with such titles as “Karaoke,” and “Love is Love,” as well as a number of opera productions, including a panoramic view of {…}
On December 8, 2018, audiences gathered in St. Brigid – Saint Emeric Church to hear the story of Christ birth in a slightly different way: through opera. “El Rey Nacio,” by composer Jose Luis Gonzalez Moya, bills itself as the “first opera composed about the birth of Jesus,” and this structure serves the miraculous nature of the narrative in highly {…}
Bare Opera has announced that it will be showcasing a holiday concert on Dec. 14, 2018. The performance, which will take place at The New Work Project in Brooklyn at 7 p.m., will feature performances from a wide range of artists, including tenor SungWook Kim, mezzo-soprano Inbar Goldmann, mezzo-soprano Kirsten Scott, and pianist Laetitia Ruccolo. These are all major players {…}
On Wednesday, November 21, 2018, award-winning composer Felix Jarrar will be bringing a wide selection of his works for a concert at New York City’s Cornelia Street Café. Titled “Felix Jarrar & Friends,” the concert will feature two arias from Jarrar’s upcoming comic opera, “Mother Goose.” Singing these arias will be soprano Eugenia Forteza and mezzo-soprano Inbal Milliger; Forteza and Milliger {…}
On Sunday, Oct. 14, 2018, the Christman Opera Company put together a double bill of operas by composer Theodore Christman and Anna Winslow. Taking place at the Plácido Domingo Hall at the Opera America Center in midtown New York City, the event had a tremendous amount of intimacy and the proximity to singers only added to this. The stripped down {…}
Christman Opera Company has announced its upcoming project, which will be a double bill of operas by composer Theodore Christman and librettist Anna Winslow. The operas, “Metamorphosis” and “Adriana McMannes,” will be presented on Sunday, October 14, 2018 at the Plácido Domingo Hall in The National Opera Center. The former work will be making its world premiere, while the latter {…}