The title role of Verdi’s “Otello” is one of the hardest roles ever written for a tenor in the Italian repertoire. Luciano Pavarotti simply recorded it while Carlo Bergonzi (who was considered a Verdi expert) and Franco Corelli always refused to sing it. On the other hand, Plácido Domingo debuted the role when he was 34 years old, and though {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has announced its cast for the 2026-27 season opening. As noted the company will open its season with a production of “Otello” directed by Damiano Michieletto under the direction of the company’s new music director Myung-Whun Chung. The cast will be headlined by Brian Jagde in the title role, alongside Eleonora Buratto as Desdemona and Luca {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has confirmed that the 2026-27 season will open with Verdi’s “Otello.” The production will be directed by Damiano Michieletto and will be conducted by Music Director Myung-Whun Chung. The opera will open on Dec. 7, 2026. The company also confirmed that the 2027-28 season will open with Verdi “Un ballo in maschera” under the direction of Chung. The {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced that it will stream a 2023 production of “Otello” on Feb. 26, 2026 instead of the originally scheduled “Luisa Miller.” The company will stream the performance starring Jonas Kaufmann, Ludovic Tézier, Bekhzod Davronov, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, and Szilvia Vörös. Alexander Soddy conducts the production by Adrian Noble. The company was originally set to live stream a {…}
Pro Musica San Miguel Mexico is set to present Verdi’s “Otello” on Feb. 6 and 7, 2026. The showcase, set to take place at the Teatro Ángela Peralta, will be led by conductor Jesús Almanza and director Rodrigo Garciarroyo, who also takes on the iconic title role. Garciarroyo is joined by Jacinta Barbachana, interpreting Desdemona, and Enrique Angeles, playing Iago. {…}
(Photo: © Klara Beck) From October 29 to November 9, the Strasbourg Opera will be performing Verdi’s “Otello.” As always with the Strasbourg Opera, the Filature in Mulhouse will be staging this production as well on, November 16 and 18. The staging has been given to the director Ted Huffman, who employs a highly effective minimalist approach, focusing the drama {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has announced that its 2026-27 season will open with Verdi’s “Otello.” The opera has been absent from the company’s repertoire since the 2004-05 season, when the work was presented in the 2001 Graham Vick production. It was later supposed to open the 2020-21 season with Jonas Kaufmann and Marina Rebeka, but that production never came to {…}
The Staatsoper Stuttgart is set to open a new production of Verdi’s “Otello.” The production will see Artist, filmmaker and writer John Akomfrah as well as director and set designer Silvia Costa collaborate on a new production of Verdi’s masterpiece. Akomfrah’s contribution to that production includes new material as well as excerpts from his work for the British Pavilion at the {…}
The Staatsoper Stuttgart has announced a cast change for its production of Verdi’s “Otello.” The company said that Matthew Polenzani will no longer sing the title role due to personal reasons. As a result, Marco Berti will replace him on May 18, 21, 25, and July 6, 9, 16, and 18, 2025. Berti has performed the role of Otello in {…}
(Credit: Victor Santiago) This past week, Francesco Meli made his role debut as “Otello” in Verdi’s masterpiece. It marked his 18th Verdi role and a return to the Venice house where has sung many of those Verdi works. But in the run-up to the premiere of the opera, Meli’s comments in an interview with Il Giornale became the center of {…}
The Teatro La Fenice has canceled the opening night of the 2024-25 season due to a strike called by the main theater unions of the company. The company said that the Nov. 20 performance will no longer take place but the following performances on Nov. 23, 26, 29, and Dec. 1 are still set to be performed as scheduled. Ticketholders {…}
