(Photo: Geoffroy Schied) This performance proved an excellent revival of “Der Freischütz” for the summer Festival. First seen five years ago, Dmitri Tcherniakov’s production strips away any Romantic origins the piece has and replaces them with a cool and calculated tale for our time: be warned, spoiler alerts follow. Production Details During the Overture a film shows the main protagonists {…}
San Francisco Opera is set to present Strauss’ “Elektra” from June 7–27, 2026. The opera will be conducted by Caroline H. Hume Music Director Eun Sun Kim in a production by Keith Warner. The production will star Elena Pankratova in her company debut in the title role alongside Elza van den Heever as Chrysothemis. Michaela Schuster will portray Klytemnestra while {…}
(Credit: Karen Almond / Metropolitan Opera) On June 16, the final concert of the Schwabacher series will showcase bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen and pianist Carrie-Ann Matheson. They will be joined by participants of the 2026 Merola Opera Program, Shannon Crowley, Charlotte Kelso, Chester Seungyup Han, Ryan Bryce Johnson, Paul Jang, and Deven Shah. The program will feature songs by Ravel, Duparc, {…}
(Photo credit: Matthew Washburn) The Schwabacher Recital Series presented by Merola Opera Program and San Francisco Opera Center returns with a series of three recitals. The series opens on April 1 with three of the 2024 Merola alumni and second-year San Francisco Opera Adler Fellows, soprano Mary Hoskins, baritone Olivier Zerouali, and pianist Ji Youn Lee. The evening’s program, curated {…}
(Photo credit: Elle Logan) The Madison Symphony Orchestra is set to celebrate the holiday season with “A Madison Symphony Christmas.” Music Director John DeMain leads the Orchestra in his 32nd and final season as Music Director, joined by soloists soprano Alexandra LoBianco and bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen. Returning are the Madison Symphony Chorus under the direction of Beverly Taylor, the Madison {…}
(Photo: © Monika Rittershaus) “Don Giovanni” is an opera of seductions and escapes, moral wreckage and divine retribution, a shimmering mosaic of comedy, tragedy, farce, and existential dread. Yet “the mother of all operas” is also a uniquely treacherous work—at once alluring and intractable, irresistibly open yet elusive. Music’s sublimity rarely fails to connect with audiences, even in a less-than-stellar {…}
The San Francisco Symphony has announced its 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Donald Runnicles conducts Alban Berg’s Seven Early Songs and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1. Irene Roberts is a soloist. Performance Dates: Sept. 26-28, 2025 Jane Glover conducts Händel’s “Messiah” with Heidi Stober, Jennifer Johnson Cano, Josh Lovell, and Will Liverman. Performance Dates: Dec. 5 {…}
The Canadian Opera Company is set to present Gounod’s “Faust” at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. The opera, which is set to be presented on Oct. 11, 13, 16, 18, 24, 26, and Nov. 2, 2024, will be directed by Amy Lane, featuring sets and costumes designed by Emma Ryott. The production is a co-production with the {…}
( Photo: © SF/Monika Rittershaus) All sinful things come wrapped in fascinating aesthetics. You know the feeling: something that is extremely beautiful and appealing, but disquieting—too pleasurable to be ethically good. That is Salzburg Festival’s “Don Giovanni”: a spectacular dramatic installation, a grandiose musical project, a lustful conception; yet sinfully wrong. First things first. This is a revival of Romeo {…}
(Photos: Evan Zimmerman / Met Opera) The Metropolitan Opera presented the tenth performance of composer Kevin Puts’s “The Hours,” with libretto by Greg Pierce, on Friday, May 10th 2024. In November 2022, OperaWire reviewed “The Hours” debut with great attention towards how the opera came to the Met, including Kevin Puts’s score, Greg Pierce’s libretto, and the undeniable beauty of the {…}
The Dutch National Opera has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera René Barbera, Roman Burdenko, Aigul Khismatullina, Alexander Köpeczi, and Maya Gour Star in a revival of Verdi’s “Rigoletto.” Yi-Chen Lin conducts. Performance Dates: Sept. 2-29, 2024 Britten’s “Peter Grimes” will get a new production by Barbora Horáková. Lorenzo Viotti conducts a cast that includes Issachah Savage, Johanni van Oostrum, and {…}