(Credit: Marty Sohl) The Metropolitan Opera’s 2023-24 season unfurled a tapestry of music, history, and Afrofuturistic magical realism with Broadway producer Robert O’Hara’s “X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X,” composed by Anthony Davis, to a libretto by Thulani Davis, based on a story by Christopher Davis. The Met, traditionally a bastion of opera’s classic repertoire, transformed into a {…}
(Credit: Zenith Richards / Met Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to present the company premiere of Anthony Davis’s “X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X.” The opera will open on Nov. 3 and will be conducted by Kazem Abdullah in a newly revised score, which features a layered, jazz-inflected setting. The opera will star baritone Will Liverman, soprano Leah {…}
Credit: Richard Termine As a mopey high schooler, requiems were my thing: Mozart’s, Fauré’s, Verdi’s — it was these that introduced me to choral music on a grand scale, and if not for them, in all likelihood, I wouldn’t have been sitting in the Met auditorium watching Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin lead soloists and the Met Orchestra and Chorus {…}
(Credit: Richard Termine / Met Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to present Verdi’s Requiem. The work will be conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin and will star soprano Leah Hawkins, mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill, tenor Matthew Polenzani, and bass Dmitry Belosselskiy. Verdi’s Requiem has been performed at the Met more than 50 times, beginning on Feb. 17, 1901, when it commemorated the composer’s death {…}
The Los Angeles Philharmonic has announced a cast change for Verdi’s Requiem on July 11, 2023. The company said that Leah Hawkins will sing the soprano role, replacing Angel Blue. Hawkins added on her social media, “When your instincts tell you to pack a score, PACK it ! (It’s time for me get an iPad, I’ve fought long enough…. *eyeroll* {…}
The Santa Fe Opera has announced a cast change for Puccini’s “Tosca.” The company said that soprano Leah Hawkins will sing all remaining performances of “Tosca,” which opened the 2023 Season on June 30 and runs for 11 performances through August 26. This comes as a result of the withdrawal of Angel Blue, who was most recently scheduled for four {…}
The Santa Fe Opera has updated its cast for Puccini’s “Tosca.” The company noted that Leah Hawkins will sing three more performances of the title role on June 30, July 5, and 8, 2023. She will take over for Angel Blue who was scheduled for those performances as she will go on tour with the Met Opera. Additionally, Hawkins will {…}
The Metropolitan Opera has announced its Live in HD series for the 2023-24 season. First up is “Dead Man Walking.” Yannick Nézet-Seguin conducts a cast starring Latonia Moore, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, and Ryan McKinny. Screening Date: Oct. 21, 2023 Next up is “X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X.” Leah Hawkins, Raehann Bryce-Davis, Victor Ryan Roberston, Will Liverman, and {…}
Leah Hawkins is set to perform in the Marian Anderson Vocal Award Recital at The Kennedy Center on Feb. 12, 2023. The soprano, who is this year’s recipient of the major honor, will perform music by Hairston, Wagner, Poulenc, Copland, Grant Still, Ashbourne, and the Kennedy Center premiere of Barnes’ “Proverbs.” Hawkins will be joined by pianist Kevin Miller. The {…}
(Credit: Corey Weaver) The Metropolitan Opera has announced a cast change for its upcoming revival of “La Bohème.” The company said that sopranos Sylvia D’Eramo and Leah Hawkins will be singing Musetta in the upcoming spring performances of Puccini’s La Bohème, replacing Kristina Mkhitaryan. D’Eramo will join the cast on April 21, 24, and 28; and May 2, 6 (matinee), {…}
Opera Memphis is set to present Puccini’s “Tosca” starting on Jan. 27, 2023. The famed Italian work will star Leah Hawkins in the title role alongside Rafael Davila as Cavaradossi and Todd Thomas as Scarpia. Ned Canty will direct while Ari Pelto will conduct. There will also be a behind-the-scenes feature broadcast via WKNO 91.1 FM featuring the creative team {…}