(Photo: Dario Acosta) Mezzo-soprano Susan Graham has joined the line up for the Carlisle Floyd Centennial concert. The tribute honoring the 100th anniversary of the birth of Carlisle Floyd will take place at Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage on June 20, 2026. Graham will sing a scene from Floyd’s rarely performed “The Sojourner and Mollie Sinclair,” one of {…}
(Credit: © Guergana Damianova – OnP) Ralph Fiennes knows a thing or two about Alexander Pushkin’s novel in verse, “Eugene Onegin.” It turns out he has a touch for opera, too, based on his directorial debut at the Paris Opera. His staging of Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” at the Palais Garnier is rooted in tradition, but he controlled the action on {…}
(Credit: Guergana Damianova / OnP) The Opéra National de Paris is set to broadcast and stream its new production of “Eugene Onegin.” The opera will be broadcast live on France.tv on Feb. 9 and will also be broadcast at a later date in cinemas and on Paris Opera Play. The recording will be made on Feb. 6 and 9, 2026, {…}
Following the departure of the Washington National Opera’s decision to leave the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, more than 60 artists have signed an open letter pledging support to the company. The letter, which is an ongoing effort organized by Pulitzer and Grammy-award winning librettist Mark Campbell, states “We, the undersigned, support the recent decision between Washington {…}
(Photo: “Dead Man Walking” by Jake Heggie was twenty-five years old on Sunday, September 14th. In San Francisco, its anniversary was celebrated by the opening of a production, one of the 80 productions worldwide, with the composer, Jake Heggie there to receive the San Francisco Opera Medal, and Sister Helen Prejean, from whose book the opera arose, and retold in {…}
GBH Music has partnered with Boston Lyric Opera and New England Conservatory of Music to explore and demystify opera through the new digital video series, “Getting into Opera.” The video series follows emerging vocalists in a masterclass led by guest artists. Episodes already released include “Davóne Tines and Morgan Mastrangelo,” “Susan Graham and Mary Kray,” “Patricia Racette and Emily Michiko {…}
The San Francisco Opera is set to celebrate the 25th anniversary of “Dead Man Walking” by San Francisco-based composer Jake Heggie and librettist Terrence McNally. The opera, which returns to the War Memorial Opera House stage on Sept. 14 through 28, 2025, will open the season. The opera premiered in 2000 and has since been seen in 80 productions worldwide, {…}
The San Francisco Opera has announced its 2025-26 season. The company is set to present its “Opera Ball,” co-presented with the San Francisco Opera Guild. Performance Date: Sept. 5, 2025 The season opens with Verdi’s “Rigoletto” with Eun Sun Kim conducting the work. Amartuvshin Enkhbat leads the cast in the title role alongside Adela Zaharia, Giovanni Sala, J’Nai Bridges, and {…}
(Photo credit: Tony Hitchcock) Despite winning a Pulitzer Prize and receiving great acclaim following its Metropolitan Opera premiere in 1958, Barber and Menotti’s “Vanessa” is not regularly programmed as a full work. Arias such as “Must the winter come so soon?” and “Do not utter a word” are frequently heard in recitals, but this does not do justice to this {…}
The National Symphony Orchestra is set to present Samuel Barber’s “Vanessa” on Jan. 30 and Feb. 1, 2025. The opera, which will be conducted by Gianandrea Noseda and will star Nicole Heaston in the title role, replacing Sondra Radvanovsky, who withdrew for personal reasons. Heaston will be joined by tenor Matthew Polenzani, mezzo-soprano Susan Graham, and baritone Thomas Hampson. These performances of Barber’s “Vanessa” {…}
(Photo: Elisa Haberer / Opéra national de Paris) I sensed two ghosts on the stage of Opéra Bastille last night. Don’t worry—they were as nice as ghosts can be. In fact, they were so congenial that they enhanced the operatic experience, turning what would have been a merely jolly evening into a thought-provoking one. The problem is, no matter how {…}