George Benjamin’s “Written on Skin” makes its return to the Royal Opera House on Friday, Jan. 13 for five performances. The opera, Benjamin’s first full-length work in the genre, had its premiere at the 2012 Aix-en-Provence Festival and then arrived at the Royal Opera House in 2013. The work is divided into 15 scenes and takes place in 13th Century {…}
Violetta, the heroine of Verdi’s “La Traviata,” is one of the iconic roles of the operatic repertoire, the measuring stick by which almost all sopranos are judged. Singing the role for many is an indication for them that they have “arrived” in the opera world. It is so imbued with depth and intensity that years and years of performance reveal {…}
30 performances. Seven cities. Five house debuts and two role debuts. That is what tenor Brian Jagde faces in 2017. The first half of 2017 that is. The tenor, who has been growing in prominence over the last few years, is slated for a monstrous calendar year that will see him make more house debuts than he ever has before. {…}
Polish tenor Piotr Beczala was born on this day, December 28, exactly 50 years ago. In celebration of the tenor’s big day, Operawire shares 50 facts about the operatic superstar. Piotr Beczala was born on Dec. 28, 1966. He is from Czechowice-Dziedzice in southern Poland. He studied under Sena Jurinac in Switzerland. He is married to Katarzyna Beczała. Beczala is known for choosing his roles wisely {…}
At the end of the 2016-17 season, the Metropolitan Opera will premiere a new production of Strauss’ venerated “Der Rosenkavalier” directed by Robert Carson. From the looks of it, this production is slated to be a huge success for some but could put off more traditional audiences. The production, which is shared with the Royal Opera House in London, is {…}
This weekend the international opera houses will have a lot to offer from very popular works in the repertoire to lesser known works. They will also showcase some of the greatest stars in the world. Vienna The Vienna State Opera will offer two Verdi works including “Macbeth” with Simon Keenlyside and “Falstaff” with Ambrosio Maestri and Carmen Giannatasio. In between {…}
Dmitri Hvorostovsky has announced that he will withdraw from all upcoming opera productions. The Russian baritone said in a statement via Facebook “It is with great sadness that I must withdraw from opera performances for the foreseeable future. I have been experiencing balance issues associated with my illness, making it extremely difficult for me to perform in staged productions.” However, he {…}