The San Francisco Opera has announced that Arturo Chacón-Cruz has been named winner of the 2017 Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Emerging Stars Competition, earning him the distinction of “2017 Emerging Star of the Year.” The tenor is coming off a run of “La Bohème” at the San Francisco Opera, where he earned solid reviews all around. He was chosen {…}
Ponchielli’s “La Gioconda” will kick off the 2017 national radio broadcast series of San Francisco Opera performances on the WFMT Radio Network this Saturday, September 2. The broadcast dates back to 1979 and stars soprano Renata Scotto in the title role and tenor Luciano Pavarotti as Enzo Grimaldi. The performance features each artist’s first performance of their respective roles. The {…}
Maria Agresta has withdrawn from the San Francisco Opera’s upcoming production of Puccini’s “Turandot” due to illness. The company announced that American soprano Toni Marie Palmertree will sing Liù, replacing Agresta and will now perform in all six September performances. Palmertree scored a triumph last season when she substituted for an ailing colleague on two hours’ notice as Cio-Cio-San in Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly.” {…}
“Dream of the Red Chamber,” commissioned by San Francisco Opera from Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng with a libretto by Sheng and playwright David Henry Hwang, will tour to the People’s Republic of China in September 2017. In a press conference, it was unveiled that “Dream of the Red Chamber” will travel to three Chinese cities in six performances. The tour {…}
Michaela Martens will replace Stephanie Blythe in the San Francisco Opera’s upcoming production of “Elektra.” Martens will appear in the role of Klytemnestra in a new staging by Keith Warner, which starts on Sept. 9, 2017. She is set to take on Klytemnestra with Houston Grand Opera in January 2018 as well. Martens’ San Francisco Opera debut came in 2015 {…}
On Thursday, the San Francisco Opera Guild, in collaboration with San Francisco Opera Association, announced details for Opera Ball 2017 at The Imperial Palace. The event is a gala benefit aimed at celebrating the start of SFO’s 95th Season. The event will take place on Sept. 8, 2017, at the Imperial Palace Pavilion adjacent to the War Memorial Opera House. The {…}
The love for opera is healthy and growing in San Francisco. The San Francisco Opera announced that its Opera in the Ballpark, a free live simulcast from the stage of the War Memorial Opera House on June 30, 2017, to the 103-foot wide scoreboard at the home of the San Francisco Giants, was a rocking success as over 23,000 people {…}
As we get deeper into the summer, the opera world starts to slow down ever so slightly in North America. But there are still some major events taking place over the weekend, including a historic one. San Francisco Opera closes out its run of “Don Giovanni” which features a stellar cast that includes Ildebrando d’Arcangelo and Ana María Martinez among {…}
The San Francisco Opera has awarded Geoffrey M. Craig, the Company’s Head of Wardrobe, with the San Francisco Opera Medal, the company’s highest honor. The award was presented in honor of Craig’s 36 years of service, which will come to an end at the close of this summer season. “In over three decades of exemplary service, Geoffry has led the {…}
It’s easy to love Puccini’s “La Bohème:” art, love, friends who romp and cavort, street scenes with lively genre action, and music to die for. Puccini’s classic thrills even non-opera lovers. “I could go every night,” we hear spectators say on leaving the War Memorial Opera House. Bringing to life again this Co-production with Houston Grand Opera, originally performed there {…}
With the summer underway, the opera world remains in full swing. Opera in Ozarks is the big company to make headlines this weekend as the company showcases two performances. “Le Nozze di Figaro” gets a look on Friday while “Susannah” gets a showcase on Saturday. Wolf Trap Opera also gets a major showcase with “La Pietra del Paragone” on Friday {…}