Aleksandra Kurzak’s early singing career saw her perform as a specialist in lyric and coloratura soprano roles before moving into heavier roles in 19th-century Romantic and verismo operas. The 2004-05 season saw her have two hugely successful debuts, at the Metropolitan Opera House and the Royal Opera House. She has since sung many leading roles in opera houses throughout the {…}
Opera on the James is set to present Puccini’s “Tosca.” The opera, which is set to be performed on Nov. 11 & 13, is set to star Michelle Johnson as Tosca, Samuel Schlievert as Cavaradossi, and Todd Thomas as Scarpia. The work is set to be directed by Michael Capasso and conducted by Peter Leonard. The production is licensed by Archivio {…}
The Lyric Opera of Connecticut will present Puccini’s “Tosca” this November. The work will get four performances with the opening one on Nov. 3 set to take place at the Trinity-On-Main Arts Center in New Britain. That will be followed by showcases at the Garde Theater in New London on Nov. 6, the Bushnell Belding Theater in Hartford on Nov. {…}
(Credit: © Tessa Traeger) On Sept. 26, Carlo Rizzi opened the Metropolitan Opera for the third time in his career. However, that experience was unique because he was conducting “Medea” for the time ever. And it’s just the first of three works at the Met this season. A few days after the opening, the conductor returned to the podium to {…}
The Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo in Bogotá will celebrate World Opera Day on October 25 with the streaming of “Gianni Schicchi,” “Aida,” “Tosca,” and “Il Trovatore.” Entitled “Opera: a Window to Emotions,” the streams that will be presented jointly by Bancolombia, with the Mayor’s Office of Bogotá, through the District Institute of the Arts and the Stage of {…}
It is something of a paradox that the proverbial dearth of tenors coexists with the announcement, in regular intervals, of some new vocal phenomenon which, after a solo recital or two, the recording industry decides to “crown before they are king” – to loosely and no less cynically paraphrase a famous saying by Mascagni. Yet too many are the instances {…}
Photo: © Genevieve Girling Christof Loy’s new production of “Tosca” for English National Opera, which first appeared in Helsinki in 2018, replaces Catherine Malfitano’s show, which received two revivals during its tenure and last appeared on the Coliseum stage in 2016. The production sees Leo Hussain return to the Coliseum pit – a distinguished Music Director of Opéra de Rouen and {…}
New York’s Heartbeat Opera has announced its 2022-23 Season, which includes a video premiere and the company’s Spring Festival, featuring significant adaptions of Puccini’s “Tosca” and Verdi’s “Macbeth.” The Season kicks off with a free video premiere of Beethoven’s “Fidelio” featuring over 100 incarcerated singers from six prison choirs. Ethan Heard adapted and directed this re-imagining of the opera in {…}
(Credit: KarenAlmond/Metropolitan Opera) A “shabby little shocker.” That’s how musicologist Joseph Kerman described Puccini’s “Tosca.” Shabby? No. A little shocker? No. It’s a big shocker. Perhaps we’ve become inured to how dark and violent “Tosca” is with scenes of rape, murder, torture, and suicide. There was no mistaking the grittiness of Puccini’s fast-paced thriller at the Metropolitan Opera. The October {…}
As the Metropolitan Opera enters October, three new productions will open and as we pointed out in the first article of this series, entering into opera out of the blue can be a daunting task. Some works are more well-known than others but even for those that have never been to the opera, those classics don’t have the same meaning {…}
The Metropolitan Opera has announced a cast change for Puccini’s “Tosca.” The company said that for the performances of Puccini’s “Tosca” on Oct. 4, 8, 11, and 15, the role of Scarpia will be sung by Luca Salsi. For the performances on Oct. 19, 24, 27, 31, and November 4, the role will be sung by George Gagnidze. Both baritones {…}