(Credits: Matilde Fasso / Salzburger Festspiele / Doris Wild) The Wiener Staatsoper has announced multiple cast changes for the upcoming performances of Gounod‘s “Faust” and Verdi‘s “Nabucco.” Per an official press release, tenor John Osborn will sing the title role in “Faust” on Nov. 7, 2021, replacing Stephen Costello. Osborn joins a cast that includes Rachel Willis-Sørensen as Marguerite, Adam {…}
The Donizetti Opera Festival has announced that it will stream all three of its operatic productions from the 2021 season. The festival announced that the second week of the festival, audiences from around the world will be able to experience its productions through Donizetti OperaTube, a video channel that was created last year as Donizetti webTV. Subscribers will be able {…}
(Credit: Pierre Planchenaul) “Robert le Diable” premiered at the París Opera in 1831. The immediate success of the piece led its composer, Giacomo Meyerbeer, to sudden international stardom. This opera set the standard for French Grand Opera, with the story divided into five acts, ballet numbers, great pompous chorus scenes, and the latest theatrical effects. It became the ultimate form {…}
Italy’s Teatro La Fenice has announced its 2021-22 season featuring 11 operatic productions and several vocal concerts. Here is a look. Opera Sesto Quatrini conducts Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” which is set to star Monica Zanettin in the title role, Manuela Custer as Suzuki, Vincenzo Costanzo as Pinkerton, and Alberto Mastromarino as Sharpless. Performance Dates: Sept. 10-22, 2021 Antonio Poli sings {…}
The Palau de les Arts in Valencia, Spain, has announced its 2021-22 season. For the purposes of this article, we will highlight the vocal and operatic performances. The season opens with Verdi’s “Requiem.” James Gaffigan conducts a production by Romeo Castellucci starring Elena Tsallgova, Sara Mingardo, Sebastian Kohlhepp, Nahuel Di Piero, and the Escolania Mare de Déu dels Desemparats. Performance {…}
Opéra National de Bordeaux has announced its rich 2021-22 season. For the purpose of this article we will focus only on vocal performances. Here is the full slate. Opera A semi-staged version of Meyerbeer‘s “Robert Le Diable” opens the season. The opera stars Erin Morley, Nicolas Courjal, Amina Edris, Nicolas Darmanin, Joel Allison, Paco Garcia, and John Osborn in the {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced its 2021-22 season which will spotlight some of the world’s greatest performers and five new productions. Here is the full slate. Premieres Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” will showcase Juan Diego Flórez as Count Almaviva, Marianne Crebassa as Rosina, Davide Luciano in the role of Figaro, Paolo Bordogna as Bartolo, and Ildar Abdrazakov as Basilio. {…}
The Donizetti Opera Festival has announced the 2021 season. The season opens with “C’erano una volta due bergamaschi” an operashow led Alex Esposito and Artisti della Bottega Donizetti. Michele D’Elia performs at piano. Performance Date: Nov. 18, 2021 Riccardo Frizza conducts a new production of “L’Elisir d’Amore” directed by Frederic Wake-Walker. The critical edition stars Caterina Sala, Javier Camarena, Florian {…}
(Credit: Marc Ginot) The Festival Radio France Occitanie Montpellier in France has announced the 2021 season. For the purposes of this article, we will only focus on the vocal and operatic performances. Le Concert Spirituel, under conductor Hervé Niquet, performs an all-Handel program including God Save the King. Performance Date: July 15, 2021 Adriana Gonzalez and Thibaut Garcia join the {…}
(Credit: Javier del Real) In a recent review, I took stock of the Teatro Real de Madrid’s production of “Norma” and its first cast. But I also had the opportunity to check out the other cast of the work, including Hibla Gerzmava in her debut as the title character. Unfortunately, it was not the auspicious debut one would have imagined {…}
(Credits: LA Opera official website / Peter Knutson) The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced the cancelation of its run of Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” between March 20 & 26, and the presentations of Verdi’s “Les Vêpres siciliennes” on April 5, 10 & 13, 2021. The opera house stated that the performances could not be presented due to the worsening of the {…}
