The Metropolitan Opera Chorus Master Donald Palumbo has announced his decision to step down from the full-time role that he has held for the past 17 years at the end of the 2023–24 season in June. Throughout his tenure, Palumbo elevated the Met Chorus to new heights and was responsible for the chorus’s preparation and performance in nearly 25 productions {…}
The Saudi National Orchestra performed at the Metropolitan Opera in a private event on Sept. 17, 2023. The Arab news is reporting that the event was entitled the “Marvels of Saudi Orchestra” and was a collaborative effort between the Saudi Theater and Performing Arts Commission, the Saudi Music Commission, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Kingdom’s Ministry of Culture. The Met’s {…}
The Metropolitan Opera is set to revive Puccini’s “La Bohème” for 18 performances in the fall and winter. The opera, which is set to run between Oct. 10 and Jan. 13, will first star Federica Lombardi in the lead role alongside Matthew Polenzani, Olga Kulchynska, and Adam Plachetka. The cast also includes Sean Michael Plumb in his Met role debut as {…}
The Metropolitan Opera and Lincoln Center Theater New Works Program have announced the commission of a new work by Ukrainian composer Maxim Kolomiiets and librettist George Brant. The new opera will be based on the true events of Ukrainian mothers who embarked on an arduous 3,000-mile journey behind enemy lines into Russia to rescue their children forcibly detained there by {…}
The U.S. Open has announced that Will Liverman, the Metropolitan Opera Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin and members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra will perform at the Men’s final on Sept. 10, 2023. They will perform “America the Beautiful/Lift Every Voice and Sing” on Arthur Ashe Stadium court prior to the 2023 US Open men’s singles championship and it will mark {…}
(Credit: Tim Osipov) Anna Netrebko has filed an amendment to her lawsuit against the Metropolitan Opera and its General Manager Peter Gelb. In a statement, the soprano’s manager Miguel Esteban said, “Today in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Anna Netrebko filed an amended complaint against the Metropolitan Opera and Peter Gelb. It responds to {…}
(Photo Credit: Ken Howard) Does opera seen at the movies count as its own experience? With the advent of streamed opera in movie theaters, the idea that filmed opera can somehow replace or make up for the real-life experience is a touchy point. Of course, one can’t compare the feeling of being in an opera house with being in a {…}
The Metropolitan Opera will observe Ukraine’s Independence Day on August 24 continuing its mission to support the country. The company said, “Tomorrow, August 24, in honor of Ukraine’s Independence Day, we will display Ukrainian flags on the façade of the opera house and broadcast the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra’s recent performance in Warsaw on Metropolitan Opera Radio, Sirius XM channel 355, {…}
The Metropolitan Opera is set to open its 2023-24 season with the company premiere of Jake Heggie’s “Dead Man Walking.” The opera opens on Sept. 26 and will be performed nine times. Ivo van Hove directs the production with a cast that includes Joyce DiDonato as Sister Helen, Ryan McKinny as Joseph De Rocher, Latonia Moore as Sister Rose, and Susan Graham {…}
The Guggenheim’s Works & Process has announced its fall 2023 season. The program amplifies support for performing artists and their artistic process, and simultaneously provides the public with behind-the-scenes access to new works, fostering greater understanding and appreciation. Here are the operas that will be previewed. The Houston Grand Opera and Urban Bush Women will present “Intelligence” by Jake Heggie, {…}
Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb has responded to the news that the Met Opera Guild has been dissolved. Gelb told the Associated Press, “It really is the result of several years of declining economic fortunes. What they’re suffering is what many non-profits have been suffering, which is a situation where the earned revenues and donations are not enough to {…}
