(Photo credit: Monika Rittershaus) Who’s afraid of double bills? We all love “Cav.” and “Pag.,” and there is some room in everyone’s heart for a “The Human Voice” meets “Bluebeard’s Castle;” nevertheless, Gluck’s Iphigenia operas performed together was a bit of a challenge. The operas, lasting two hours each, are easily stand-alone pieces, and—even though they share a protagonist—they appear {…}
The Pittsburgh Opera is set to present “Iphigénie en Tauride.” The opera, which opens on Jan. 20 and runs through Jan. 28, 2024, tells the the Trojan War-era tale of a sister whose duty requires that she kill a man who turns out to be her brother. The work will star Emily Richter, Brandon Bell, Fran Daniel Laucerica, Julia Swan Laird, {…}
Boston Baroque has announced a cast change for its production of Gluck’s “Iphigénie en Tauride.” The company announced that Wendy Bryn Harmer has withdrawn from the production due to injury. In her stead, Soula Parassidis, who is the CEO of Living Opera, will take on the title role, marking her debut with Boston Baroque. She previously sang the role in {…}
The Opéra de Paris has announced that Jacques Imbrailo has withdrawn from the upcoming production of Gluck’s “Iphigénie en Tauride.” As a result, the role of Oreste will be performed by Jarrett Ott, who will be making his Paris Opera debut. The American baritone has performed at the Santa Fe Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, and the Stuttgart Stattsoper. This season {…}
(Credits: © Aymeric Giraudel / Fabien Monthubert / © Simon Fowler) Opéra de Rouen Normandie, France has announced its 2021-22 season. For the purpose of this article, we will only focus on the operatic and vocal performances. Here is the full slate. Opera and Musicals Verdi‘s “Il Trovatore” opens the season with Lionel Lhote as Count di Luna, Brigitta Kele {…}
(Photo Credits: Emma Birski / OnP) Opéra National de Paris has announced its 2021-22 season. Here is the full slate. Operas “The Seven Deaths of Maria Callas” by Marina Abramovic will open the season. The showcase stars Nadezhda Karyazina, Selene Zanetti, Leah Hawkins, Adela Zaharia, Lauren Fagan, Gabriella Reyes, and Hera Hyesang Park. Yoel Gamzou conducts. Performance dates: Sep. 1 {…}
(Credit: Fay Fox) The Opéra National Du Rhin in France has announced that soprano Joyce El-Khoury’s recital has been canceled due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns and the current lockdown in France. The recital was set to be held on March 26 and El-Khoury was supposed to present a mix of classic, traditional and Lebanese music. The French government imposed a {…}
The Komische Oper Berlin has canceled its production of “Iphigénie en Tauride.” The new production, which was expected to open on Dec. 5, would have been directed by Barrie Kosky and would have featured a cast headlined by Nadja Mchantaf, Dominik Köninger, Tansel Akzeybek, and Evan Hughes. The news comes as Germany is rumored to extend lockdowns following Zurich’s December {…}
Few composers in the history of opera were as influential as Christoph Willibald Gluck. Born on July 2, 1714, the composer was one of the major reformers of the artform of his day. He was noted as being critical of opera of his day and how it had strayed from its origins. He sought to bring back the sense of {…}
Piotr Beczala takes on the role of Massenet’s “Werther” on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017, kick starting the Gran Teatre del Liceu’s run of the famed opera. Beczala took on the challenging role in Salzburg in August 2015 before reprising it at the Opéra National de Paris exactly one year ago. His return to the role on Sunday will be the {…}