(Photos by Marty Sohl / Met Opera) Works & Process at the Guggenheim is set to present a preview of the Met Opera’s upcoming production of “Medea” on Sept. 19, 2022. The event will feature soprano Sondra Radvanovsky, director David McVicar, conductor Carlo Rizzi, tenor Matthew Polenzani, soprano Janai Brugger, and pianist Howard Watkins in a panel discussion that will {…}
The Polish National Opera has announced that the 74 musicians that make up the newly-established Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra have arrived at the Polish National Opera, Teatr Wielki in Warsaw. The orchestra will take up a 10-day artistic residency that will conclude with the inaugural concert of its concert tour. In a joint statement, Peter Gelb, the General Manager of the {…}
Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb has spoken out against Yusif Eyvazov’s comments on social media regarding Angel Blue’s cancelation at the Arena di Verona. Following backlash toward the use of Blackface in a production of “Aida,” Eyvazov took to social media to defend his wife Anna Netrebko and said Blue’s decision was “disgusting” and questioned why she had not {…}
In a recent interview appearing in Van Magazin, Jeffrey Arlo Brown spoke with Met General Manager Peter Gelb in which he discussed a wide variety of topics, with considerable questioning around the Russian war on Ukraine, his falling out with soprano Anna Netrebko following an expose where the New York Times revealed she had filed a grievance against the Metropolitan Opera, {…}
Photo: Juilian Hargreaves Since the end of February 2022, in statements made by several artist or theaters, we have kept reading something along the lines of: “Art must be separated from politics.” It is an encouraging and probably fair point, but can it be, especially, when we talk about opera? Today, when we enjoy a performance worth hundreds of thousands {…}
Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb is taking a new stance on Russian artists performing at the Met Opera, noting he will allow them privacy. In an interview with the Guardian, Gelb said, “Most Russian artists, including other singers who perform at the Met, have not taken any public political position. Their private positions are theirs to keep private. I {…}
Following Anna Netrebko’s statement in which she distanced herself from Vladimir Putin, Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb has commented that he is not ready to bring the soprano back. Peter Gelb told the New York Times, “We’re not prepared to change our position. If Anna demonstrates that she has truly and completely disassociated herself from Putin over the long term, {…}
For over a month, there have been no big headlines about the Metropolitan Opera in news. Sure, there are cast changes and the likes, but that’s kind of business as usual per the Met. And it creates a sense of progress toward the opening of the new season. But this apparent progress or achievement, which during the summer was routinely {…}
(Photo: Adi Goldstein) Every Friday, Polina Lyapustina delivers a short essay on some of the most essential topics in the industry with the intent of establishing a dialogue about the opera world and its future. Another week passed, and the negotiations that the Met and International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees started with a supposed June 14 deadline to start the Met {…}
(Photo: Alexander Thompson) Sonya Yoncheva has always played by her own rules. She’s never allowed anyone to box her in and has never followed a specific route. She has championed rarely performed like “Il Pirata,” “Siberia,” and “Medea” among others throughout her career, experimenting with all kinds of directors and often arriving at some truly immersive and original interpretations of {…}
After writing my initial article at the beginning of January 2021 regarding the conflict at the Met, I found that a lot of readers had little understanding of what was actually going on. How come the Met workers have been deprived of their sources of livelihood for months, and then, why didn’t they want to accept General Manager Peter Gelb’s {…}