(Credit: Clarissa Lapolla) The Festival della Valle di D’itria in Martina Franca, Italy is set to live stream its new production of R. Strauss’ “Arianna a Nasso.” The new production by Walter Pagliaro be broadcast at 9 p.m. Central Europe time on Italian Festival TV on July 21 and on Radio Rai 3 on Sunday, July 26. The new production {…}
The Festival Valle d’itria Martina Franca has announced its revised 2020 edition. Opera The first work of the season will be “Il borghese gentiluomo” with music by Richard Strauss. The work based on a comedy by Moliere will star Stefano Massini and Davide Gasparro sharing the title role alongside Vittorio Prato, Ana Victoria Pitts, Barbara Massaro, Manuel Amati, Nico Franchini, {…}
The Verdi Festival in Parma has announced a newly revised program. Due to social distancing regulations, the festival will now be held outdoors in order to accommodate as many audience members as possible. The season will now open with a concert performance of Verdi’s “Macbeth” in French. Ludovic Tézier and Davinia Rodríguez star in the lead roles with Riccardo Zanellato {…}
(Credit: Chris Singer/ Paul Schirnhofer/DG/ Shervin Lainez) The Teatro San Carlo di Napoli has announced its 2020-21 season which will be the first under superintendent Stéphane Lissner. Opera The season opens with Puccini’s “La Bohème” in a new production by Emma Dante. Selene Zanetti stars as Mimì with Damiana Mizzi as Musetta, Stephen Costello in his house debut as Rodolfo, {…}
(Credit: MERRI CYR) On June 28, Riccardo Frizza will conduct the Donizetti Festival Orchestra and Chorus in Donizetti’s Requiem at the Cimitero monumentale di Bergamo in Italy. The performance, which will be dedicated to all the victims of the Coronavirus, will star Eleonora Buratto, Annalisa Stroppa, Piero Pretti, and Alex Esposito. Alberto Tartari is the chorus master. In a statement, {…}
The Arena di Verona has announced its 2021 season, which will feature several notable performances with some of opera’s greatest stars. It all kicks off with a 150th anniversary celebration of the 1871 world premiere of Verdi’s “Aida.” The opera will be conducted by Riccardo Muti with Sonya Yoncheva in the title role alongside Francesco Meli, Riccardo Zanellato, Luca Salsi, {…}
The Opéra National de Paris has announced its 2020-21 season featuring a number of new productions revivals. Here is a look. Domingo Hindoyan and Keri-Lynn Wilson lead performances of Bizet’s “Carmen” with Clémentine Margaine, Elīna Garanča, and Varduhi Abrahamyan sharing the title role and Vittorio Grigolo and Charles Castronovo as Don José. Adam Plachetka and Lucas Meachem alternate as Escamillo, {…}
(Credit: Sylvia Elzafon) The Dallas Symphony has announced its 2020-21, which launches the tenure of famed conductor Fabio Luisi as Music Director. For the purposes of this article, the focus will be on opera and vocal performances. The season will open with a gala concert led by Luisi that will feature music of Massenet, Mozart, Puccini, Rossini, Saint-Saëns, Verdi, and {…}
(Credit: Richard Termine / Met Opera) The role of Violetta in “La Traviata” is one of the most challenging in all of the repertory despite its ubiquity. As such, there are a lot of sopranos who manage to pull off the role, though few with overall great vocal and dramatic consistency on stage. But Lisette Oropesa, taking on the role {…}
(Credit: Ryan Donnell) Opera Philadelphia has announced its 2020-21 season with the theme Fortune & Might. O20 Festival Jennifer Higdon and Jerre Dye’s “Woman with Eyes Closed” makes its world premiere opening the Opera Philadelphia’s festival. German director Christian Räth helms the production which is set to star Meredith Arwady, Kevin Ray, Fleur Barron, and Wei Wu Performance Dates: Sept. {…}
After weeks maintaining the mysterious TBA in its cast list for its upcoming performances of “La Traviata,” the Metropolitan Opera has announced Vittorio Grigolo’s replacement. And the man to take on the role will be Italian tenor Piero Pretti, who Met audiences are just getting to know. Pretti made his Metropolitan Opera debut this season in a revival of “Madama {…}
