I once saw an evening of Kathakali theater, a kind of folk opera of southern India. I would probably not have understood much of what was going on in “The Killing of Dushasana” had I not read the program booklet beforehand. Even so, after the first scene my regular biases for dialectic drama vanished and I was hooked, overwhelmed by {…}
Hans Werner Henze’s opera “The Bassarids” received its first performance at the Salzburg Festival on August 6, 1966. At the premiere, Christoph von Dohnanyi conducted the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. English-American poet W.H. Auden and his partner Chester Kallman wrote the libretto based on Euripides’ “Bacchae,” one of the last tragedies of the great Greek dramatist. Within weeks, the opera was {…}
Festival season continues while some of the bigger opera companies start to open up in time for the fall showcase. This weekend will feature some acclaimed stars as well as a world premiere and a rarely performed work. Here is what we recommend. Aida – Opera Australia, Australia Natalie Aroyan, Riccardo Massi, and Milijana Nikolic star in Verdi’s epic classic. {…}
Sean Panikkar has slowly been growing through the ranks of the opera world. His numerous engagements with the Metropolitan Opera have made him visible throughout the world and he has been able to make important debuts at the Festival Aix en Provence, Cincinnati Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, and Fort Worth Opera in recent years. He has also been an advocate for {…}
The 2017-18 season comes to an end and in comes festival season. So where are the big stars and what are interesting works being discovered this year? With a ton of selections to be sure, we whittled it down to the 10 Must-See productions (as we did with the U.S.) that cannot be missed this summer. 10. Tristan und Isolde – {…}
The North Carolina Opera’s 2018-19 season has been announced, featuring three operas and one recital. The season will showcase many rising stars and some of today’s biggest international artists. The season with a concert performance of Bellini’s “Norma” in a concert performance. Leah Crocetto sings the title role alongside Elizabeth DeShong and Chad Shelton. Anthony Walker conducts the performance at {…}
The Lyric Opera of Kansas City has announced its 2018-19 season. The new season is filled with numerous important debuts from some of today’s rising stars and is also filled with four productions from a diverse repertoire. The season opens with Bernstein’s “West Side Story” in Francesca Zambello’s classic production based on the original production directed and choreographed by Jerome {…}
The Pittsburgh Opera will presents Jake Heggie’s acclaimed “Moby-Dick” for the first time. As part of the company’s initiative to bring new, American operas, the Pittsburgh Opera will showcase the work in March. Based on the famous novel of the same name by Herman Melville, the opera will be showcased in a co-production with the Utah Opera. OperaWire’s review noted, “Jake Heggie’s {…}
This past Thursday night, the NYC Choral Society gave their yearly gala, once again at one of Manhattan’s finest social clubs, The Metropolitan Room, a former men’s only club on 5th Av. kitty-corner the Plaza Hotel. Each year the NYCHORAL performs concerts of their own ranging from baroque, Christmas, and contemporary music and are regularly part of the famed Richard {…}