Over the last few weeks, major opera houses around the world have announced their offerings for 2017-18. Now Opera Tampa has now joined the fray, revealing three major works. To kick off their sixth season, Opera Tampa will showcase Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” on Feb. 2, 2018, with a second performance on Feb. 4, 2018, at the Carol Morsani Hall. {…}
The San Francisco Opera has announced that it will present Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” as part of its Opera at the Ballpark series. The company will simulcast the June 30 performance from the War Memorial Opera House at the AT&T Park which will reach up to 30,000 fellow attendees. Audience members will get to enjoy food while watching the opera and {…}
Opera Orlando is opening its new 2017-2018 season in the park! The company’s first production will open on August 21, 2017, at 2 P.M., featuring Mezzo-soprano Amanda Crider. The next weekend “The Three Baritones,” Nathan Stark, Brain Myer, and Gabriel Pressier, will perform. Finally, Tenor Marco Panuccio will end the summer series for Opera Orlando. All of the concerts will {…}
Most opera singers can’t wait to rush in and sing their dream roles. In fact, in today’s world, with the high demand for singers to mature at an earlier age, a lot of young singers start young and end young, the pressure simply too great to sustain a lasting and healthy career. Iwona Sobotka was privy to this scenario early {…}
Matthew Polenzani loves Mozart’s “Idomeneo.” During a recent interview with OperaWire, the tenor went so far as to call it the composer’s “greatest opera.” That’s right, with output that includes gems such as “Le Nozze di Figaro,” “Don Giovanni,” “Così Fan Tutte” and “Die Zauberflote,” Polenzani, who is among the greatest exponents of these very operas, puts his marker on {…}
Lorenza da Ponte, born on March 10, 1749, is best known for three collaborations he had with Mozart. Those operas, “Le Nozze di Figaro,” “Don Giovanni” and “Così Fan Tutte” stand as some of the greatest in the repertoire, not only because of Mozart’s great music, but also as a result of Da Ponte’s brilliant dramatic skills. But the librettist {…}
For audiences who missed Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” at the Metropolitan Opera, there is another chance on Feb. 19. PBS will broadcast the HD performance originally shown in movie theaters on Oct. 22 starring baritone Simon Keenlyside in the title role with Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi in the pit. The cast is rounded out by Hibla Gerzmava as Donna Anna, Malin Byström {…}
Mozart’s operas are collections of some of the art form’s most iconic characters. A survey through the works of classical music’s most iconic creator, who turns 261 on Jan. 27, will reveal one complex being after another. The lengthy list is unlike any other in perhaps any art form. Every character shines brightly in a Mozart character, whether he be {…}
What do Giuseppe Di Stefano, Mirella Freni and Fritz Wunderlich have in common? While the three opera stars never collaborated, they had a massive impact of Joel Prieto’s formative years. The tenor recently told OperaWire, in an exclusive interview, about how these three icons of opera transformed his life completely and still do in many ways. Early Turning Points It {…}
Mozart’s “Così Fan Tutte” makes its appearance at the Paris National Opera this coming Monday featuring a relatively young cast in a dynamic production be Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. The run kicks off on Jan. 23 and runs through Feb. 19 for a grand total of 10 performances. The Performers Getting the bulk of work as Fiodiligi is Jacquelyn Wagner, {…}
On Jan. 18 the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma will open its new production of Mozart’s “Cosi Fan Tutte.” The production by Graham Vick will star Francesca Dotto and Federica Lombardi alternating the role of Fiordiligi and Chiara Amarù and Paola Gardina singing the role of Dorabella. Gugliemo will be performed by Vito Priante and Mattia Olivieri while Ferrando will be sung by Juan Francisco Gatell and Antonio Poli. Meanwhile, {…}