It’s Valentine’s Day, the day to cherish a significant other. Last year we took a cynical look at the holiday, but not this year. Opera is rife with love, almost every single plot in every single work has some communion of two persons in that blissful word. In fact, love in opera has incited just as many battles and tension {…}
Massenet composed legions of operas. But “Manon” remains the most renowned of his works, presenting frequently all around the world to this very day. The opera had its world premiere on Jan. 19, 1884, and has never left the stage. Based on the Abbé Prévost’s famed novel from 1731, the opera takes liberties with the material, though the core of {…}
When you come right down to it – French Grand Opera – is very grand. A large canvas, huge sets, wide-ranging costumes, display of various kinds, sweeping music, on occasion, and musical textures that vary and offer range of interest – plus human beings, who, set into this panorama – resume their rightful size: ordinary. What? We control our own {…}
It will be a fun week for Ellie Dehn. A few months ago, soprano Nadine Sierra was slated to be the artist to lead the San Francisco Opera’s new production of “Manon.” But Sierra pulled out of the role and Dehn was called upon to take the torch of one of the hardest roles in the lyric soprano repertoire. It {…}
Opera Santa Barbara kicks off its 2017-18 season with Massenet’s “Manon” on Nov. 3, 2017, with an additional showcase two days later on Nov. 5. Acclaimed soprano Sarah Coburn will star in the title role while tenor Harold Meers will appear as her lover Des Grieux. The cast will also include baritone Alex DeSocio as Lescaut, bass-baritone Colin Ramsey as {…}
No more Nadine Sierra at San Francisco Opera next season. Instead, soprano Ellie Dehn will replace the recent Richard Tucker Award winner in next season’s production of “Manon.” The official announcement was made on Monday, indicating that Dehn would sing all six performances of the run which kicks off on Nov. 5, 2017 and ends on Nov. 22, 2017. According {…}
Vittorio Grigolo is one of the most acclaimed tenors of his generation and has already been hailed as the successor to Luciano Pavarotti, his greatest qualities including his rampant energy and charisma on stage. On Feb. 19 Grigolo celebrates his 40th birthday and as a result OperaWire takes a look at some his most acclaimed roles The Duke in “Rigoletto” Vittorio Grigolo {…}
It’s Valentine’s Day, a momentous occasion to celebrate love and romance. Romance is at the heart of opera with the art forms pull coming from our connection with beautiful love affairs. Most everyone melts at Rodolfo and Mimì’s blooming love in “La Bohème” or Alfredo and Violetta’s in “La Traviata.” We admire the sacrifice of Roméo and Juliette or even {…}
Arturo Chacon-Cruz will sing the role of Des Grieux in Massenet’s “Manon” at the Opera de Monte Carlo. The tenor is replacing Jean-Francois Borras, who is ill. The opera premieres today and it marks the second replacement in a cast that was supposed to include Sonya Yoncheva in the lead role. Chacon-Cruz will sing alongside Anne-Catherine Gillet in the title role. {…}
I imagine that upon reading the title of this article, you were probably confused about the arbitrary pairing of Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” and Massenet’s “Manon.” The former is an opera in the Bel Canto style, firmly looking backwards in both its subject matter and style while the latter is one of Manon and French opera’s more progressive operas. The former {…}
The San Francisco Opera announced its 2017-18 season and this season the company will be presenting five operas and the complete Ring Cycle. As with every season, there are always exciting new productions and great classics to see. But what artists should audiences be on the lookout for? The following is a list of the five stars that cannot be {…}