Saioa Hernández, Xabier Anduaga, Aleksandra Kurzak, Roberto Alagna, Tomasz Konieczny, Federica Lombardi, Julieth Lozano, Elsa Dreisig, & Juliana Grigoryan Lead Deutsche Oper Berlin’s 2026-27 Season

The Deutsche Oper Berlin has announced its 2026-27 season. Premieres “Mittwoch aus Licht” will be conducted by Maxime Pascal and directed by Susanne Kennedy. Performance Dates: Sept. 19-27, 2026 Wagner’s “Der fliegende Holländer” will be conducted by Anna Handler and Giedrė Šlekytė and directed by Milo Rau. The opera will star Tareq Nazmi, Aušrine Stundytė, Attilio Glaser, Stephanie Wake-Edwards, Omar {…}

Sep 1, 2025

Rossini Opera Festival 2025 Review: L’Italiana In Algeri

(Photo: Amati Bacciardi) This summer’s Rossini Opera Festival’s imaginative and fast-moving production of the composer’s 1813 comic opera, “L’Italiana in Algeri,” hit the mark in so many ways: it was funny, colorful and energetic; the cast were fully engaged with their characters, which they hammed up brilliantly for laughs; the underlying dynamics of the narrative were expertly handled by the {…}

Jun 15, 2025

Marie Lys, Francesca Aspromonte, Key’mon Murrah, & Jeremy Ovenden Star in Les Talens Lyriques’ 2025-26 Season

Les Talens Lyriques releases its 2025-26 season. Lully’s “Proserpine” opens the 2025 season. Marie Lys, Véronique Gens, Olivier Gourdy, Jean-Sébastien Bou, Ambroisine Bré, Laurent Kilsby, Apolline Raï-Westphal, Nick Pritchard, Olivier Cesarini, and David Witczak make up the cast. They are joined by Chœur de Chambre de Namur led by Thibaut Lenaerts, and Les Talens Lyriques under the direction of Christophe {…}

May 14, 2025

Karen Chia-ling Ho, Olga Kulchynska, Mattia Olivieri, Lucia Lucas & Iestyn Davies Lead Santa Fe Opera’s 2026 Season

The Santa Fe Opera has announced its 2026 season. Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” will open the season with a revival production directed by Melanie Bacaling. The cast will include Karen Chia-ling Ho, Stephen Costello, Jonathan Burton, Jarrett Ott, and Sun-Ly Pierce. John Fiore conducts. Performance Dates: July 3-29, 2026 Harry Bicket conducts Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” in a production by Christopher Luscombe. Josh Lovell, Joélle Harvey, Rainelle {…}

May 12, 2025

Lauren Snouffer Lead Atlanta Opera’s Production of ‘Semele’

The Atlanta Opera is set to present a new production of George Frideric Handel’s “Semele.” The production, which opens on June 7, 2025, at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre and runs through June 15, 2025 will be directed and produced by The Atlanta Opera’s Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General and Artistic Director Tomer Zvulun. Zvulum blends modern mythology and theatrical {…}

Apr 23, 2025

Teatro alla Scala 2024-25 Review: L’opera seria

(Photo credit: Brescia and Amisano) “I should reproach myself even more if I were to allow myself to be credited with the initiative for the new genre of Italian opera … it is to my librettist Calzabigi that the main credit goes …” Gluck, letter of 1775 Let us speak directly of the opera at hand, recently brought to the {…}

Apr 16, 2025

Teatro alla Scala 2024-25 Review: L’opera seria

(Photo credit: Brescia and Amisano) One of the most common phenomena of the 18th century was the pilgrimage of European composers to Italy, seeking to immerse themselves in the “alla italiana” compositional technique and then return to their homelands to apply this revolutionary formula. Such was the case of Florian Leopold Gassmann (1729–1774), who left his native Bohemia to settle {…}

Aug 6, 2024

Salzburg Festival 2024 Review: Capriccio

(Photo credit: SF/Marco Borrelli) The ending of “Capriccio” has often been praised; less has been said out loud about how never ending the rest of the opera is. Performed in a concert version, with little to no theatrical movement, it lasts for almost an eternity. Perhaps I am being too harsh. Although “Capriccio” is far from a magnum opus, it is {…}

May 28, 2024

Anna Netrebko, Jonas Kaufmann, Ludovic Tézier, Rosa Feola, Juan Diego Flórez, Camilla Nylund & Marina Rebeka Lead Teatro alla Scala’s 2024-25 Season

The Teatro alla Scala has announced its 2024-25 Season. Opera The season opens with Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” starring Anna Netrebko, Jonas Kaufmann, Ludovic Tézier, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Alexander Vinogradov, and Marco Filippo Romano. Riccardo Chailly conducts the new production by Leo Muscato. The opera will also star Elena Stikhina, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Luciano Ganci, and Simon Lim in the second {…}

Feb 29, 2024

John Osborn, Amanda Forsythe, Joélle Harvey & Christian Van Horn Lead Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s 2024-25 Season

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra has announced its 2024-25 season. Here are the vocal performances. Nicholas Kraemer conducts a program that includes the music of Händel, Beethoven, and Mozart. Soloists include Amanda Forsythe, Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, Josh Lovell, and Michael Sumuel. Performance Dates: Oct. 17-19, 2024 Fabien Gabel and Konstantin Krimmel team up for a program of music by Britten, Mahler, {…}

Dec 2, 2023

CD Review: Opera Rara’s ‘La Princesse de Trébizonde’

The production history of Jacques Offenbach’s “La Princesse de Trébizonde” is convoluted to say the least. It premiered twice, once in Baden-Baden and once at the Bouffes-Parisiens in 1869. In between both versions, it was reworked extensively; pastiches from the unpublished “La Baguette” were removed and Offenbach wrote a whole new act in a bid to align the narrative of {…}