Karine Babajanyan, Daniel Okulitch & Lucio Gallo Lead Seattle Opera’s Spring Digital Season

The Seattle Opera has announced its Spring digital series after canceling its originally planned 2020-21 season. Andrew Stenson presents a recital on YouTube Streaming Date: Jan. 29, 2021 Jasmine Habersham and WIll Thomas in Recital will perform a new recital. Streaming Dates: Feb. 19-March 12, 2021 Randall Scotting, Jeni Houser, Joshua Kohl, Karen Vuong, Maya Gour, Margaret Gawrysiak, Joseph Lattanzi, {…}

Oct 9, 2020

Vanessa Goikoetxea Takes Over ‘Così fan tutte’ at Teatro de la Maestranza

(Credit: Ópera Actual website) The Teatro de la Maestranza in Sevilla has announced that soprano Vanessa Goikoetxea will perform the role of Fiordiligi in Mozart and Da Ponte’s opera “Così fan tutte” On Nov. 1, 3, 5 & 7, 2020. Goikoetxea will replace soprano Carmela Remigio. Goikoetxea will join a cast that includes Maite Beaumont in the role of Dorabella, {…}

Aug 18, 2020

Seattle Opera Announces Creation Lab

Seattle Opera has announced a new initiative to help cultivate and develop the next generation of opera composers and librettists in Washington State. The new Creation Lab will seek out 16 emerging composers and writers of all genres to give way to the creation of short operatic pieces, which will be performed during the 2020-21 Season. In a press statement, {…}

Jun 21, 2020

The Drunken Tenor Teams Up with Seattle Opera for Tongue-in-Cheek Performance

Metropolitan Opera tenor Robert McPherson, in collaboration with Seattle Opera, will showcase the singer’s soused alter-ego The Drunken Tenor in “The Drunken Tenor: Quarantini Edition.” The program is set to stream on the company’s website, YouTube, and Facebook June 26th at 7:00 p.m. PDT (4:00 p.m. EDT). Head of Coach-Accompanists pianist David McDade and soprano Jennifer Bromagen join McPherson’s tongue-in-cheek {…}

Jun 4, 2020

Seattle Opera Cancels First Production of 2020-21 Season

The Seattle Opera has announced the cancellation its fall production of “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci.” The company revealed in a press statement that due to the global pandemic, it was forced to cancel the first production of the season. The cancellation will result in the loss of work for more than 220 singers, crew, and musicians. Additionally, with the end {…}

May 8, 2020

Angel Blue, Jamie Barton, Vanessa Vasquez Headline Seattle Opera’s ‘Songs of Summer’ Recital Series

The Seattle Opera is set to showcase a recital series entitled “Songs of Summer” with some of opera’s biggest stars. Angel Blue is the first to headline a recital on May 28, which audiences can watch via the Seattle Opera’s Facebook, YouTube, or official website. Blue will be joined by pianist Jay Rozendaal for a 30-minute program. On June 4, {…}

Apr 27, 2020

Seattle Opera Receives Federal Loan; Rehires Employees

The Seattle Opera has received a $2.3 million loan under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), part of the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The company said on Friday, April 24 that the loan will help the company rehire 180 workers that were laid off due to the Coronavirus crisis. The company also noted that 12 administrators who {…}

Apr 24, 2020

Seattle Opera Unveils Online Radio Broadcasts of Past Performances

Seattle Opera has announced that starting on Saturday, April 25, 2020, it will start broadcasting past performances on Classical KING FM 98.1. The program, “Seattle Opera Mornings on King FM” will feature past performances from the company’s archives. All broadcasts will be available on the radio and at king.org starting every Saturday at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET. {…}

Mar 28, 2020

One in a Million: Soprano Vuvu Mpofu’s Fascinating Story of Opera Success

(Credit: Gerard Collett) On the eastern side of the Cape of Good Hope, at the very tip of South Africa, sits Port Elizabeth, a city with a population just shy of one million people. The population size matters because it makes soprano Vuvu Mpofu one in a million, a ratio perhaps not unlike the shot she had at making it {…}

Mar 5, 2020

Seattle Opera Continues Performances Amidst Coronavirus Outbreak

The Seattle Opera is set to perform Charlie Parker’s “Yardbird” Saturday March 7, 2020. The company, which is monitoring the developments of the coronavirus outbreak in the Pacific Northwest and globally, is currently set to perform the work as scheduled. In a public health announcement, the Seattle Opera stated that King County Public Health is recommending that people 60 and {…}

Jan 21, 2020

Seattle Opera 2019-20 Review: Eugene Onegin

(Photo Credit: Sunny Martini / Seattle Opera) Seattle Opera’s production of Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” has travelled around, being co-owned by regional opera companies in Kansas City, Honolulu, Detroit, Atlanta, and Seattle, with costumes rented from Santa Fe Opera. And while it was musically and emotionally rewarded, the mounting on January 11 was visually staid. Roads Not Taken For Tchaikovsky’s opera {…}