Kristine Opolais, Vida Miknevičiūtė, Tuomas Pursio & Stefan Pop Lead Finnish National Opera’s 2024-25 Season

The Finnish National Opera has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Leevi Madetoja’s “The Ostrobothnians”, which is known as Finland’s “national opera” will be directed by director Paavo Westerberg. The cast will include Jukka Rasilainen, Ville Rusanen, Jussi Vänttinen, Johanna Lehesvuori, Maria Turunen, Iida Antola, Päivi Nisula, Tuomas Pursio, Aarne Pelkonen, Ilkka Hämäläinen and Mika Pohjonen. The Orchestra of the Finnish National {…}

Mar 10, 2024

Kristine Opolais, Karine Babajanyan, Olena Tokar & Nicholas Brownlee Lead Oper Leipzig’s 2024-25 Season

Oper Leipzig has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Bach’s “Amadis, der Ritter” is set to star Matthias Stier, Daniel Arnaldos, Olga Jelínková, Samantha Gaul, Sarah Traubel, Olena Tokar, Franz Xaver Schlecht, Jonathan Michie, Jonathan Michie, Gabrielė Kupšytė, Nora Steuerwald, and Franziska Zwink. Performance Dates: Sept. 21, 2024-June 15, 2025 Daniele Squeo conducts Bellini’s “Norma” with a cast that includes Dominick Chenes, {…}

Jan 31, 2024

Carnegie Hall 2023-24 Review: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

(Credit: © Steve J. Sherman 2024) It’s been five years since the New York audiences have heard soprano Kristine Opolais. Once a stalwart at the Metropolitan Opera, the soprano has now dedicated herself to performing mostly in Europe and seeking “something special” in the productions or performances she does. And in her return to New York, the soprano found that {…}

Jan 29, 2024

Boston Symphony Orchestra 2023-24 Review: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Photo: Winslow Townson The first time my partner watched Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk,” he couldn’t believe that the composer ever thought a Stalinist regime would be pleased with the opera. The “in-your-face” power of the work made him—a (handsome) man whose political convictions ponder between socialism and cowboyism—find endearing that ‘Shosta’ could not see his censoring coming. Even today, {…}

Jan 11, 2024

CD Review: Unitel Edition’s ‘Tosca’

“Oh my!” is how one would headline, exasperatingly, the sordid, crude, and entirely inappropriate production of “Tosca” at Vienna’s Theater an der Wien. Severed limbs, some sort of nuclear winter, and an orgy of on-stage violence and sex – the premises to Martin Kušej’s vision of the Puccini melodrama could not be more grotesque and, in essence, detrimental to the {…}

Dec 20, 2023

Arte to Stream Kristine Opolais Kaunas Concert

Kristine Opolais’s concert in Kaunas is set to be presented on Arte on Jan. 7, 2024. The soprano took to social media and said, “My dear friends, on January 7th, you can watch a live tv broadcast of my concert with tenor Liparit Avetisyan and maestro Constantine Orbelian with the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra at the gorgeous Kaunas Basilica on {…}

Nov 7, 2023

Artist of the Week: Kristine Opolais

This week the Lithuanian National Opera is set to bring a new production of “Aida” this week with one of the most sought-after sopranos of her generation. Kristine Opolais will make her debut with the company in the title role of Aida, a work she last performed completely 15 years ago in Riga. The last time she performed a part {…}

Nov 4, 2023

Q & A: Kristine Opolais on Life as an Artist and Her Role as an Opera Singer

(Credit: Polina Viljun) Kristine Opolais is one of the most sought-after sopranos on the international scene, with an established reputation amongst the world’s preeminent singing actresses. Opolais has appeared at The Metropolitan Opera, Wiener Staatsoper, Staatsoper Berlin, Bayerische Staatsoper, Teatro alla Scala, Opernhaus Zürich, and the Royal Opera House. She collaborates with renowned conductors including Daniel Barenboim, Sir Antonio Pappano, {…}

Oct 25, 2023

Kristine Opolais, Pavel Cernoch, Dmitry Belosselskiy, Elena Stikhina Headline Shostakovich Festival Leipzig 2025

Conductor Andris Nelsons, in collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Gewandhausorchester have announced a Shostakovich Festival in Leipzig scheduled for 2025. From May 15-June 1, 2025, the conductor and ensembles will present all of the famed composer’s symphonic works, concertos, and other major works to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his passing. Additionally, there will be a third orchestra {…}

Oct 14, 2023

Kristine Opolais Replaces Sonya Yoncheva in Mannheim

The Mannheimer Philharmoniker has announced a cast change for its Oct. 15, 2023 concert. The orchestra said, “Due to an acute illness, Sonya Yoncheva will not be able to sing the concert. We are delighted that the great Kristine Opolais, one of the world’s leading sopranos, will be singing with us in her place.” Opolais will join Freddie de Tommaso {…}

Jun 6, 2023

Kristine Opolais, Gaston Rivero, & Justina Gringytė Lead Lithuanian National Opera’s 2023-24 Season

The Lithuanian National Opera has announced its 2023-24 season. The season opens with Verdi’s “Aida” conducted by Sesto Quatrini and starring Kristīne Opolais, Kseniya Bakhritdinova, and Viktorija Miškūnaitė sharing the title role. They will be joined by Gaston Rivero, Liudas Norvaisas, Justina Gringytė, Tadas Girininkas, Liudas Mikalauskas, Arūnas Malikėnas, and Kostas Smoriginas. Performance Dates: Nov. 10-18, 2023 Vladimiras Prudnikovas will {…}

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