The Teatro alla Scala has advanced plans for the Teatro alla Scala’s 2025-26 season. The season will open with Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” directed by Vasily Barkhatov and Sara Jakubiak. Riccardo Chailly will conduct. In February 2026, the company will give the entire “Ring Cycle” with Simone Young and Alexander Soddy. In April, the company will revive “Turandot” in {…}
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra has announced the 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Orchestra Daniela Candillari conducts Pergolesi’s “Stabat Mater” with Giulia Semenzato and Jennifer Johnson Cano. The program includes Jennifer Gunn as a soloist and music by Simon, Barber, and Musgrave. Performance Dates: Oct. 3 & 4, 2025 Manfred Honeck conducts Mozart’s “Requiem” with Jeanine {…}
The Teatro San Carlo has announced a cast change for its upcoming production of Puccini’s “Tosca.” The company said, “We regret to inform our audience that Jonas Kaufmann has been forced to cancel his participation in the role of Cavaradossi in the opera ‘Tosca’ for an occurred date change, with the result of an unsolvable calendar incompatibility.” As a result, {…}
(Credit: Victor Santiago) This past week, Francesco Meli made his role debut as “Otello” in Verdi’s masterpiece. It marked his 18th Verdi role and a return to the Venice house where has sung many of those Verdi works. But in the run-up to the premiere of the opera, Meli’s comments in an interview with Il Giornale became the center of {…}
Francesco Meli is sharing his thoughts about performing a white Otello in his role debut in Verdi’s masterpiece at the Teatro La Fenice. In an interview with Il Giornale, the Italian tenor said that his Otello would be white because the director had decided that there would be no paint to darken the tenor’s face. However, Meli said that he {…}
(Credit: Michele Crosera) On Nov. 26, 2024, Rai Radio 3 will broadcast Verdi’s “Otello” from the Teatro La Fenice. The new production by Fabio Ceresa will be conducted by Myung-Whun Chung. Francesco Meli will sing the title role for the first time, Karah Son as Desdemona, and Luca Micheletti as Iago. The cast will be rounded out by Francesco Marsiglia, Enrico {…}
The Arena di Verona has announced its 2025 season. Verdi’s “Nabucco” will get a new production. Stefano Poda will direct the new production. Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Youngjun Park, Luca Salsi, and Igor Golovatenko lead the cast that includes Anna Pirozzi, Maria José Siri, Anna Netrebko, and Olga Maslova as Abigaille, Francesco Meli and Galeano Salas as Ismaele. The cast is rounded out by Roberto {…}
(Credit: Teatro Real, Royal Opera House/Bill Cooper/Salzburg Festival) With the year coming to an end, four major Italian opera houses are set to open their 2024-25 seasons. As customary the Italian opera calendar opens in late November or early December. So here is a look at what to expect from these four famed theaters. Teatro La Fenice The Venice Theater {…}
Prima Classic is hinting at a new recording of Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra.” The recording company posted a picture of the Teatro San Carlo’s poster of the current cast of the Verdi opera and said, “‘Simon Boccanegra!’ Something is going on…” The cast for the upcoming concert performances includes Ludovic Tézier in the title role, Michele Pertusi as Jacopo Fiesco, Mattia Olivieri as {…}
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, {…}