The Teatro La Fenice has announced that Michele Mariotti will conduct the annual New Year’s concert. The concert will be held on Dec. 28, 30, 31, 2025, and Jan. 1, 2026. Alfonso Caiani will lead the chorus. The Jan. 1 evening will be broadcast on Rai 1. Soloists will be announced at a later date. Mariotti is the Musical Director of {…}
The Teatro La Fenice has announced a cast change for its production of “La Traviata.” The company said that due to illness Ekaterina Bakanova will take over the final performances on Nov. 24, 27, and 30 replacing the originally scheduled Marina Monzò. Bakanova had already sung the first performance and took to social media and said, “Breaking News! I take {…}
The Teatro La Fenice has canceled the opening night of the 2024-25 season due to a strike called by the main theater unions of the company. The company said that the Nov. 20 performance will no longer take place but the following performances on Nov. 23, 26, 29, and Dec. 1 are still set to be performed as scheduled. Ticketholders {…}
(Credit: Teatro Real, Royal Opera House/Bill Cooper/Salzburg Festival) With the year coming to an end, four major Italian opera houses are set to open their 2024-25 seasons. As customary the Italian opera calendar opens in late November or early December. So here is a look at what to expect from these four famed theaters. Teatro La Fenice The Venice Theater {…}
The Teatro La Fenice has canceled its opening night performance of “Turandot” on August 30, 2024. The company said that due to the announcement of a strike by the trade unions and RSUs of the La Fenice Theater Foundation, the performance of “Turandot” will not take place. The company will contact ticketholders, who will be refunded. The other performances will {…}
The Teatro La Fenice has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Myung-Whun Chung conducts Verdi’s “Otello” in a new production by Fabio Ceresa. Francesco Meli sings the title role in a cast that also stars Francesca Dotto and Luca Micheletti. Performance Dates: Nov. 20-Dec. 1, 2024 Marina Monzò, Francesco Demuro, and Nicola Alaimo star in Verdi’s “La Traviata.” Diego Matheuz conducts. Performance {…}
(Photo credit: Michele Crosera) Having seen more versions of “Don Giovanni” than there are sands on the beach, I can attest that the greatness of the opera is seldom undermined by a less than optimum staging. However, when the staging is good—or even great—, one feels that there is no better opera than “Don Giovanni.” The revival of Damiano Michieletto’s {…}
The Royal Opera House Muscat and Teatro La Fenice have met to discuss future collaborations. On a recent visit to Teatro La Fenice his Highness Sayyid Dr. Kamil Fahad Al Said, the Secretary General in the General Secretariat for the Council of Ministers and Member of the Board of Directors of Royal Opera House Muscat met with Fortunato Ortombina, General {…}
I will never die. But when if I do—certainly after 2300—, I want to be mourned with Verdi’s “Requiem.” No discussion. Few musical moments are more rewarding than the first tenor “Kyrie,” breaking into the orchestral mass, abashing any feelings that are not of heroic repentance. I simply love it. However, such strong personal preference creates rigid expectations of how {…}
Opera houses are mourning the loss of legendary pianist Maurizio Pollini, who died at 82 on March 23, 2024. In a statement, the Teatro alla Scala said, “La Scala mourns the loss of Maurizio Pollini, one of the great musicians of our time” while the Teatro La Fenice said, “It hurts our hearts to write about his passing… yes, because {…}
Photo: Roberto Moro Sometimes, opera programming can be extremely original, providing us with unexpected titles. That was the case with La Fenice/Maria Malibran’s “Maria Egiziaca,” Otto Respighi’s eclectic and sensuous opera. Especially when hearing lesser-performed titles, it is very hard to define what to expect musically. While in classic and baroque operas, there is a certain inner grammar of the {…}