(Credits: Roni Ely/Matt Madison Clark) In response to the ongoing COVID-19 concerns, Opera Omaha has made some necessary changes to the 2020-21 season in order to ensure the safety of the audiences and the safety of its artists and staff. The season will open with a production of Mozart and Da Ponte’s “Le Nozze di Figaro.” Mary Feminear will appear {…}
(Credit: Louis Melancon / Metropolitan Opera) A version of this piece was published in a 1998 edition of SF Weekly. Being a Super (Supernumerary), a fancy word for “Extra” at the San Francisco Opera had been a habit of mine many years ago. Nightly rehearsals from June through August, and performances September through November, only encouraged me to juggle my {…}
(Credit: Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera) For this week’s edition of the word search will focus on the interpreters of Richard Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier,” specifically those who have performed the role of Octavian to great renown. Your goal is to find the first name of each of these mezzo-sopranos. Instructions: You are free to solve the word search directly on your mobile {…}
(Credit: Metropolitan Opera) This week’s quiz is going to take a dramatic left turn. If you’ve been following this special feature since we started in late 2017, you’ll know that we seldom use images for quizzes. But we’re going to try something different this week. We’re going to present you with the image from a famous opera score and ask {…}
“Die ägyptische Helena,” premiered at the Dresden Semperoper on June 6, 1928. In English, “The Egyptian Helen” was adapted by librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal based on the works of Euripides concerning the Trojan War. A less successful work of Strauss, the opera was revised in 1933. The dynamic role of Helena was written for Maria Jeritza, a larger-than-life soprano in {…}
(Credit: Frances Marshall) “Opera in the Time of COVID” is an interview series in collaboration with photographer Frances Marshall of Marshall Light Studio. We talk to notable figures from around the opera world to get their perspective on how they feel these challenging times may change opera’s present and future. Soprano Lise Lindstrom is one of the great Wagnerians of this {…}
(credit: Jiyang Chen) Bard College Conservatory Orchestra is set to perform a semi-staged rendition of Strauss’s famed “Salome” on April 3 and 5, 2020. The work, which was written by Lachmann, will be directed by R. B. Schlather with Leon Botstein conducting the Bard Conservatory Orchestra. Melody Moore will headline the production and will be joined by Jay Hunter Morris {…}
(Credit: Lynn Lane) The Vienna State Opera will live stream R. Strauss and Hofmannsthal’s “Elektra” on Feb. 15, 2020. The opera will star Christine Goerke in the title role with Waltraud Meier as her mother Klytämnestra, Simone Schneider as Chrysothemis, Norbert Ernst as Aegisth, and Michael Volle as Orest. Semyon Bychkov will conduct with Uew Eric Laufenberg directing. The stream {…}
(Credit: Kristin Hoebermann) The Grand Teton Music Festival has announced highlights from its summer 2020 program, which will open on July 3, and is set to run until August 22. For the purpose of this article, we will focus only on vocal works. Singer and actress Bernadette Peters will officially open the festival with a solo concert. Performance Date: July {…}
(Credit: Miguel Lorenzo / Mikel Ponce) Richard Strauss’ “Elektra,” one of the most audacious and darkest operas in the entire repertory, is a massive undertaking for any opera company. In the case of the Palau de Les Arts, the Robert Carsen production of the gripping opera was presented with great intensity further amplified by the appearance of Irene Theorin in {…}
(Credit: Uwe Arens) The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra is set to present a concert staging of “Elektra” on March 18 and 21, 2020 at Pool and Birmingham. The concert, which will be led by Kirill Karabits, Chief Conductor of the orchestra, will feature British soprano Catherine Foster in the title role. “I’m absolutely thrilled to have been invited by Bournemouth Symphony {…}