(Photo: Ken Howard/ Metropolitan Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to revive Bartlett Sher’s production of Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” for 12 performances, beginning on April 15, 2025. The opera will first star Isabel Leonard as Rosina, Lawrence Brownlee as Count Almaviva, and Davide Luciano as Figaro. The cast is rounded out by Nicola Alaimo and Alexander Vinogradov. The {…}
Carnegie Hall has announced its 2025-26 season. “With every season, Carnegie Hall seeks to offer audiences a panoramic view of the world’s leading artists and ensembles with every performance promising to be something truly extraordinary,” said Clive Gillinson, Executive and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall, in an official press release. “Looking to 2025–2026, we’re especially excited about our next festival {…}
(Credit: Boston Symphony Orchestra) The Tanglewood Festival has announced the 2025 season. In a statement by Andris Nelsons, the conductor said, “We are excited for another fantastic summer at Tanglewood, full of exceptional music in the beautiful surroundings of the Berkshires. We are delighted to perform Puccini’s ‘Tosca’ with Kristine Opolais and Bryn Terfel, and excerpts from Prokofiev’s ‘Romeo and Juliet; with {…}
On Jan. 7, the New York Philharmonic concluded its four concert performances of Strauss’s “Also sprach Zarathustra.” The concert cycle featured Strauss’s famed tone poem, Berlioz’s Song Cycle “Les nuits d’été” and a 2021 piece by Samy Moussa entitled “Elysium.” The result of the concert was a mismatched evening featuring some very inspired playing. “Elysium” The concert opened with Moussa’s {…}
Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week audiences will hear new recordings of two famed works, one in the French repertoire and the other in the Italian repertoire. There will also be holiday recordings and some world-premiere pieces. Changing Navona releases Choral Chameleon, under the direction of Vince {…}
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 {…}
Houston Grand Opera has announced its first annual “HGO Family Day.” Scheduled for Nov. 9, 2024 at Wortham Theater Center’s Brown Theater, the 90-minute event will feature a performance of Rossini’s “Cenerentola” directed by mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard. “It was important to us to invite not only a leading opera star, but a mother, to direct our first-ever Family Day,” said {…}
The Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Josep Pons conducts Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” with Alexei Botnarciuc, Daniel Kirch, Sara Jakubiak, Ángeles Blancas, and Pavel Černoch. Àlex Ollé conducts. Performance Date: Sept. 25-Oct. 7, 2024 Maria Agresta and Saioa Hernández star in Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” with Artur Ruciński, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Brian {…}
The Opéra de Paris has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Verdi’s “Falstaff” opens the season with a cast that includes Ambrogio Maestri, Olivia Boen, Marie-Andrée Bouchard-Lesieur, Andrei Kymach, Gregory Bonfatti, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Iván Ayón-Rivas, and Federica Guida. Michael Schønwandt conducts the production by Dominique Pitoiset. Performance Dates: Sept. 10-30, 2024 Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” will star Eleonora Buratto, Elena Stikhina, Aude {…}
The New York Philharmonic has announced its 2024-25 season. Here are the vocal performances. Santtu-Matias Rouvali and Miah Persson lead a performance of music by Sibelius, Julia Wolfe, and R. Strauss. Performance Dates: Nov. 7-12, 2024 Ton Koopman conducts Händel’s “Messiah” with soloists Maya Kherani, Maarten Engeltjes, and Klaus Mertens. Performance Dates: Dec. 11-14, 2024 Kevin John Edusei and Isabel {…}
(Credit: Karli Cadel) The Washington National Opera is set to present “Songbird,” a new adaptation of Jacques Offenbach’s operetta “La Périchole.” The work, which is set to be performed between March 9 and 23, 2024, will star Isabel Leonard and Ramin Karimloo. The cast will be rounded out by Edward Nelson, Teresa Perrotta, Kresley Figueroa, Cecelia McKinley, Tesia Kwarteng, Sahel {…}
