Against the Grain Theatre has announced the appointment of Royce Vavrek as its new Artistic Director. Vavrek, the librettist behind such works as the Pulitzer Prize-winning “Angel’s Bone” “JFK,” “Breaking the Waves,” “Silent Light,” “Proving Up,” and “The Old Man and the Sea,” takes over for Joel Ivany, the company’s founding Artistic Director. “As our new Artistic Director, Royce brings {…}
(Photo credit: Jill Steinberg at National Sawdust) National Sawdust’s 10th Anniversary opening season kicked off with Artistic Director/Co-Founder & composer Paola Prestini and librettist Royce Vavrek‘s foley chamber opera world premiere “Silent Light,” featuring director & scenic designer Thaddeus Strassberger and conductor Christopher Rountree. The cast includes powerhouse soprano Brittany Renee as Esther, bass-baritone Daniel Okulitch as Johan, soprano Julia {…}
Photo: Maria Baranova Prototype Festival presented “Adoration” at New York City’s The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture on January 12th, 2024. It was an innovative opera, featuring both voices, an amplified string quartet, and technical sound engineering, composed by Mary Kouyoumdjian with a libretto by Royce Vavrek. This world premiere, shockingly timely, challenged audience members to examine bias while {…}
The American Academy of Arts and Letters has announced the winners of the 2023 Charles Ives Opera Prize and the Marc Blitzstein Memorial Awards. This year the $50,000 Charles Ives Opera Prize was awarded to “Artemisia” by composer Laura Elise Schwendinger and librettist Ginger Strand. The opera is based on the life of 17th-century Italian painter Artemisia Gentileschi and premiered at {…}
The Voices of Ascension and the Young People’s Chorus of NYC performed composer Paola Prestini’s ‘The Glass Box’ in a highly anticipated program at the Church of the Ascension on November 9th. Prestini composed ‘The Glass Box’ in 2018, with text written by Royce Vavrek as an oratorio about young refugees in Sweden. This new work challenges perspectives and promotes {…}
The National Sawdust and Beth Morrison Projects are set to team up to present “21c Liederabend, op. Worldwide” which will start streaming on June 27, 2021. The showcase will feature a wealth of renowned international artists including Holland Andrews, Amyra León, Lido Pimienta, David Frazier, Darian Thomas, Paris Marcel, Paola Prestini, Royce Vavrek, Eve Gigliotti, Natalie Frank, Erin Pollock, Theodosia {…}
Four characters across generations come to terms with their identities as a major coming-out story was playing out on television. That is at the core of “The Puppy Episode,” a new work set to be showcased by Chicago Opera Theater as part of its Vanguard Emerging Opera Composer Residency. The work was composed by Matthew Recio in collaboration with librettist {…}
Broadway and opera star Zachary James is set to host a new, online talk show. Titled “What Happened Was…” the program will feature leading figures in the world of Broadway, opera, dance, film, television, and more. Inspired by shows such as “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse,” the series comes as part of The Dallas Opera Network, and will air {…}
(Credit: Michael Brosilow) Chicago Opera Theater has announced an extensive digital 2020-21 season, which will feature five full operas. “Like most arts organizations, we’ve had to take stock of our values and strengths to determine how best to approach our season,” said Stefan Edlis and Gael Neeson General Director Ashley Magnus in a press release. “For COT, the priority is {…}
(Credit: Bree Anne Clowd/Cassandra Kay) Houston Grand Opera has announced HGO Digital, its all-new program of digital works for the 2020–21 season. The program, which is set to open in September and extending through April 2021, will see HGO release original video content bimonthly for audiences to enjoy from the comfort of their homes, free of charge. Programming includes one {…}
Credit: Dahlia Katz Composed for only two performers, the first opera written about the life of legendary cellist Jacqueline du Pré received its world premiere this past February in Toronto. Tapestry Opera, the only Canadian company dedicated to the creation, development, and performance of original Canadian operas, presented the first five performances of “Jacqueline” by Luna Pearl Woolf and Pulitzer {…}