Houston Grand Opera has announced its 2025-26 Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio Artists. Among the first-year artists are tenor Luka Tsevelidze, who secured second place at HGO’s 2025 Eleanor McCollum Competition Concert of Arias, and baritone Geonho Lee, who claimed both first place and the Audience Choice award. Pianist and coach Tzu Kuang Tan also joins the {…}
Houston Grand Opera has announced that it will present the world premiere of Joel Thompson’s “A Voice Within” on June 17, 2025, at the Emancipation Park Conservancy Cultural Center. The song cycle will feature words by librettist and poet Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton inspired by the lives of residents of Houston’s Third Ward. The showcase will be presented in collaboration with {…}
The Houston Grand Opera has announced a cast change for its Feb. 5 performance of “West Side Story.” The company noted that soprano Teresa Castillo will be stepping in to replace an indisposed colleague and perform the role of Maria in Bernstein’s West Side Story.” It will mark her company debut. Castillo has performed at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, {…}
(Photo credit: Maritere Rice) Diversity initiatives might be coming to an end in the United States’ Federal government and discrimination seems to be okay again, per the U.S. President’s latest decrees, but several opera companies are moving forward with progress regardless. The latest example comes from the Houston Grand Opera which announced on Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, that it was {…}
(Photo credit: Michael Bishop) Geonho Lee has been crowned the winner of the Houston Grand Opera’s 2025 Concert of Arias. The South Korean baritone, a current student at thhe University of Music and Theatre Munich, took home the $25,000 cash prize during the final event of the 37th Annual Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers on Jan. 17, 2025. Lee {…}
And then there were seven. Houston Grand Opera has revealed the finalists for its Concert of Arias 2025 for the 37th iteration of the Annual Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers. The finalists include: Lauren Carroll, soprano Daria Lupu, soprano Alexis Seminario, soprano Meg Brilleslyper, mezzo-soprano Luke Norvell, tenor Luka Tsevelidze, tenor Geonho Lee, baritone The finalists will perform for a {…}
Houston Grand Opera has announced a new partnership with the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. The new partnership will foster cultural exchange and collaboration between the two internationally recognized opera houses. The partnership will launch on Jan. 26, 2025 at the Liceu’s 62nd Tenor Viñas International Singing Competition. There, thanks to the generosity of the Torras Foundation and Ignacio and {…}
This year’s “Concert of Arias” at the Houston Grand Opera will feature a historic first. The event, scheduled for Jan. 17, 2025, will feature the first time that the Houston Grand Opera Orchestra performs in the event in its 37-year history. James Gaffigan will conduct the performance. Previous editions only featured a piano accompaniment. “The ‘Concert of Arias’ is a {…}
Houston Grand Opera has announced that Artistic and Music Director Patrick Summers is transitioning to a new role in the organization. Summers, who has been at the helm for over 25 years with the company, will step away from his current position in Spring 2026 and become Music Director Emeritus, where he will serve as an advisor, scholar, and guest {…}
Houston Grand Opera is set to release a recording of “Werther” starring Matthew Polenzani and Isabel Leonard. The album will hit digital storefronts starting on Nov. 15, 2024. The Act one Prélude is currently available for streaming on Apple Music Classical, Spotify, and Amazon Music. The opera is conducted by Robert Spano and also stars Jasmine Habersham and Sean Michael {…}
(Photo credit: Houston Grand Opera) The Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio is set to present its annual Butler Studio Showcase this September. Scheduled for Sept. 13 at the Cullen Theater at the Wortham Theater Center, the showcase will feature members of the 2024-25 class in staged, costumed excerpts from a variety of operatic works. This year’s program {…}