(Photo : Vincent PONTET) From March 21 to April 6, the Théâtre des Champs Elysées presents a new production of Jules Massenet’s “Werther,” staged by Christof Loy and directed by Silvia Aurea De Stefano. It’s probably no exaggeration to consider it one of the best of the first quarter of 2025, at least. In fact, it’s been a long time {…}
The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées has announced its 2025-26 season. Opera Productions Jakob Lehmann conducts Berlioz’s “La Damnation de Faust” in a production by Silvia Costa. Benjamin Bernheim, Viktoria Karkacheva, Christian Van Horn, and Thomas Dolié star. Performance Dates: Nov. 3-15, 2025 Offenbach’s “Robinson Crusoé” will be conducted by Marc Minkowski and directed by Laurent Pelly. Lawrence Brownlee, Julie Fuchs, Laurent {…}
The Dallas Opera has announced its 2025-26 season. Mainstage The season opens with Bizet’s “Carmen.” The company will present the United States premiere of a new production that recreates the original Opéra-Comique production with sets and costumes faithfully designed as they were in 1875. The production will be directed by Romain Gilbert. Marina Viotti sings the title role in her company {…}
The Bayreuth Baroque has announced its 2025 season. Francesco Cavalli’s “Pompeo Magno” is set to be presented with Leonardo García Alarcón conducting and Max Emanuel Cencic directing. The opera will star Max Emanuel Cencic, Mariana Florès, Valerio Contaldo, Artur Plinta, Nicolò Balducci, Sophie Junker, Victor Sicard, Pierre-Antoine Chaumien, Valer Sabadus Scipione, Stefan Sbonnik, Dominique Visse, Kacper Szelążek, and Marcel Beekman. Performance {…}
The Salzburg Festival has announced its 2025 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Opera Bas Wiegers conducts Michael Jarrell’s “Kassandra” with actress Dagmar Manzel and the Ensemble Modern. Performance Date: July 23, 2025 Salvatore Sciarrino’s “Macbeth” will be conducted by Vimbayi Kaziboni. Cody Quattlebaum, Alice Rossi, Leonardo Cortellazzi, Iris van Wijnen, and Davide Giangregorio. Performance Date: July 25, {…}
Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. It’s a star-studded lineup of releases with Zarzuela, bel canto, modern works, and experimental albums by leading opera singers. Mis Amores son las Flores Lisette Oropesa releases her latest album dedicated to Zarzuela. In a statement, the soprano said, “I’m so happy to {…}
Marina Viotti has signed with Naïve Records. Viotti was recently awarded a French Victoire de la Musique in 2023 and is highly recognized for her unrivaled, intense, and wide musical universe, inside and beyond the pure classical repertoire. Her debut album for the label will be out on Oct. 11 and will see her perform music by Dowland as well {…}
(Photo: Vincent Pontet) Paris is gearing up for the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games, and a variety of Olympic-themed events are taking place throughout the city. In this context, Antonio Vivaldi’s opera “L’Olimpiade” is a must-see, with the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées showcasing a new production by Emmanuel Daumas. Belgian soprano Jodie Devos, who recently passed away untimely, was originally scheduled to {…}
Mezzo-soprano Marina Viotti and guitarist Gabriel Bianco will join forces for a concert at LIFE Victoria in Barcelona. The performance, slated for April 22, 2024, will include works by Fauré, Piazzola, Almarán, Massenet, Barbara, Machín, de Falla, and Brel. The showcase will focus on Spanish songs from around the world. In addition to this performance, Viotti will perform in a {…}
The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées has announced its 2024-25 season. Here are the vocal performances. Opera in Production Bach’s “Passion selon Saint” will be conducted by Leonardo García Alarcón and directed by Sasha Waltz. The cast will include Sophie Junker, Georg Nigl, Christian Immler, Benno Schachtner, Valerio Contaldo, and Mark Milhofer. Performance Dates: Nov. 4 & 5, 2024 Poulenc’s “Dialogues des {…}
(Credit: Javier del Real) A woman’s whimper, a stifled scream, echoes in the dark. She flees into the theatre, amidst the stalls, chased by a few men in ominous rabbit masks. She seeks refuge on stage, terrified in front of the bright red curtain, the pack hunts her down, overpowers her. The trombones attack the prelude, with haunting repeated notes, {…}