Tech leader Nilab Hessabi has joined the Board of Trustees of Opera San José. In a statement, Opera San José General Director/CEO Shawna Lucey said, “As a leader in the technology space and one who has had a passion for opera since she was young, Nilab Hessabi joins a fabulous and dedicated team of community leaders who want to see opera {…}
Opera San José has been awarded $22,000 by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for Grants for Arts Projects. The grant will support diverse audience access and opportunities for the Bay Area premiere of “Florencia en el Amazonas” presented by Opera San José. The company will put the funds from the grant towards the South Bay company’s community outreach {…}
Opera San José is set to participate in the SoFA District’s evening art walk “South First Friday” on Feb. 2, 2024. As part of the celebration of arts and culture in the city, the opera company will showcase a sneak peak of its upcoming “Rigoletto” at the California Theatre. At 6 p.m., audiences will get a chance to experience performances {…}
Opera San José is set to host “Let the Dream Begin,” a virtual fundraiser on Dec. 14, 2023. The event, which will kick off at 7 p.m. local time, will celebrate the company’s 40th anniversary. The performance was written and will be directed by Opera San José resident director Tara Branham and features performances from such artists as Eugene Brancoveanu, {…}
Opera San José’s 40th anniversary season will continue with Verdi’s “Rigoletto.” The opera will be directed by Dan Wallace Miller with Jorge Parodi conducting. Baritone Eugene Brancoveanu will return to Opera San José in the title role alongside tenor Edward Graves as the Duke of Mantua and soprano Melissa Sondhi as Gilda. The cast also features bass-baritone Ashraf Sewailam as Sparafucile, mezzo soprano Melisa Bonetti Luna as {…}
Opera San José is set to participate in the SoFA District’s evening art walk “South First Friday” on Nov. 3, 2023. As part of the celebration of arts and culture in the city, the opera company will present a preview of its upcoming “The Barber of Seville” production with events taking place from 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. First up, audiences {…}
Photo credit: David Allen Opera San José will join the Downtown San Jose SoFA District’s “South First Friday” event on Sept. 1 to offer a preview of its upcoming production of Gounod’s “Romeo and Juliet.” Members of the “Romeo and Juliet” cast, including mezzo-sorpano Jessica Gonzalez-Rodriguez, tenor Keanu Aiono-Netzler, bass Eric Delagrange, and soprano Jasmine Habersham, will perform arias from the {…}
Opera San José is set to present Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” in November. The opera, which is subtitled “The Useless Precaution,” will be showcased in a production with scenery and costumes designed by Adrian Linford and directed by Stephen Lawless. The cast will include bass-baritone Dale Travis as Dr. Bartolo, baritone Ricardo José Rivera as Figaro, mezzo-soprano Nikola Printz {…}
Opera San José has unveiled its 2023-24 Artists-in-Residence. The resident company, which includes Melisa Bonetti (Mezzo-soprano), Michelle Ainna Cuizon (Director), Vartan Gabrielian (Bass-baritone), Johannes Löhner (Conductor), Courtney Miller (Mezzo-soprano), Joshua Sanders (Tenor), and Melissa Sondhi (Soprano), will be introduced in a virtual showcase scheduled for August 13, 2023. Of these artists, the company spotlighted Sondhi as the inaugural Artist-in-Residence for the Wadhwani Chair for South Asia Artists; this new initiative focuses on “incubating the incredible {…}
(Photo Credit: David Allen) Opera San José’s staging of Alma Deutscher’s “Cinderella” is set to stream for free beginning July 22, 2023. The production, which was filmed at the California Theatre in San Jose last fall, featured the operatic conducting debut of prodigy composer/musician Deutscher. The cast featured Natalia Santaliz as Cinderella, Joey Hammod-Leppek as The Prince, Ben Brady as {…}
Opera San José (OSJ) and ArtSmart have partnered to provide free voice lessons, musical opportunities, and mentorship for low-income middle and high school students. To celebrate this new collaboration, OSJ and ArtSmart invite Bay Area music lovers to their “Arts for All” fundraising initiative on May 6, 2023, to be hosted at Angelicas in Redwood City’s historic downtown district. The {…}