What does it take to make a difference in the opera world? And what does it mean? Should one be world-famous, have a star-management and a five-figure fee? I guess it’s a certain way. But then, on a planet [over]-populated by almost eight billion people, we would have just a handful of such personalities. When a couple of years ago, {…}
The Teatro del Giglio is set to present a concert dedicated to Puccini entitled “Puccini Secondo Muti.” The concert, which will be held on June 28, 2024, will be broadcast on Rai 3 and will showcase Riccardo Muti at the helm of the Orchestra Cherubini. The concert will feature such artists as Elenora Buratto, Luciano Ganci, Dmitry Korchak, Francesco Meli, {…}
Genova’s Teatro Carlo Felice has announced its 2024-25 season. Here is a look at the operas and concerts. Opera The season will open with a double bill featuring the play “Giro di vite” by Henry James and Benjamin Britten’s “The Turn of the Screw.” Davide Livermore directs the production with Riccardo Minasi at the podium. The cast for Britten will {…}
Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week audiences will get some Verdi and Monteverdi releases as well as the release of a world premiere album. Verdi Decca releases an album from the Teatro alla Scala which showcases Riccardo Chailly and La Scala as they maintain the gold standard {…}
Rai Cultura is set to broadcast the Arena di Verona’s opening night concert “La Grande Opera Italiana Patrimonio dell’Umanità” on June 7. The concert is set to feature such artists as Anna Netrebko, Eleonora Buratto, Rosa Feola, Juliana Grigoryan, Jessica Pratt, Mariangela Sicilia, Aigul Akhmetshina, Jonas Kaufmann, Juan Diego Flórez, Vittorio Grigòlo, Brian Jagde, Francesco Meli, Galeano Salas, Nicola Alaimo, Luca {…}
The Teatro La Fenice has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Myung-Whun Chung conducts Verdi’s “Otello” in a new production by Fabio Ceresa. Francesco Meli sings the title role in a cast that also stars Francesca Dotto and Luca Micheletti. Performance Dates: Nov. 20-Dec. 1, 2024 Marina Monzò, Francesco Demuro, and Nicola Alaimo star in Verdi’s “La Traviata.” Diego Matheuz conducts. Performance {…}
The Arena di Verona is set to present a concert “La Grande Opera Italiana Patrimonio dell’Umanità” on June 7. The Ministry of Culture and Fondazione Arena di Verona will present the concert, in collaboration with Rai Cultura. It will celebrate the recognition of opera as a vital contribution to cultural heritage. Riccardo Muti will conduct 154 orchestra musicians and over {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has announced its 2024-25 Season. Opera The season opens with Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” starring Anna Netrebko, Jonas Kaufmann, Ludovic Tézier, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Alexander Vinogradov, and Marco Filippo Romano. Riccardo Chailly conducts the new production by Leo Muscato. The opera will also star Elena Stikhina, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Luciano Ganci, and Simon Li in the second {…}
The Teatro San Carlo announced its 2024-25 season. The season opens with Dvořák’s “Rusalka” in a new production by Dmitri Tcherniakov. Dan Ettinger conducts a cast that includes Asmik Grigorian, Adam Smith, Ekaterina Gubanova, Anita Rachvelishvili, and Gábor Bretz. Performance Dates: Nov. 20-Dec. 7, 2024 Verdi’s “Don Carlo” will be conducted by Henrik Nánási and will star Piero Pretti, Gabriele Viviani, Ildar {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has announced a new cast change for its Verdi Requiem. The company noted that Francesco Meli will sing the tenor part replacing Freddie De Tommaso who was originally scheduled. Meli is well known for Verdi and has sung the requiem on numerous occasions. He is currently performing “Il Corsaro” at the Teatro Carlo Felice and is {…}
The Teatro Carlo Felice is set to present Verdi’s rarely performed opera “Il Corsaro.” The opera, which is set to be presented from May 17 to May 26 will be conducted by Renato Palumbo and directed by Lamberto Puggelli. The production will star Francesco Meli (Corrado), Irina Lungu (Medora), Mario Cassi (Seid), Olga Maslova (Gulnara), Saverio Fiore (Selimo), Adriano Gramigni (Giovanni), Emilio Cesar Leonelli (Un eunuco), and Matteo Michi (Uno schiavo). In a statement Renato Palumbo {…}