Heartbeat Opera is set to revive its adaptation of Samuel Barber’s “Vanessa” this Spring. The production will come to New York City for the first time, following a celebrated debut at the Williamstown Theatre Festival last summer. The production, which runs from May 12–31, 2026 at Baruch Performing Arts Center, will be directed by R.B. Schlather with a new arrangement {…}
The Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) is set to join forces with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) and Music Director Andris Nelsons to present a concert performance of Samuel Barber’s “Vanessa.” The performance will take place Jan. 8 & 10, 2026 at Symphony Hall with a cast that includes Jennifer Holloway in the title role of Vanessa, Samantha Hankey as Erika, {…}
New York’s Heartbeat Opera is set to present a new adaptation of Samuel Barber’s rarely performed opera “Vanessa” at the Williamstown Theatre Festival (WTF). The production, which will be directed by visionary R.B. Schlather, will be the first-ever opera presented at WTF. The work will be performed nine times between July 17 and August 3, 2025. Of the adaptation, Schlather {…}
(Credit: © WILLIAM STRUHS/Spoleto Festival USA) Barber’s “Vanessa” is a work rarely heard. That is why when the occasion to hear the work comes, audiences run to see it. It doesn’t hurt if it has a great cast. This week the National Symphony Orchestra is bringing the work to audiences with a stellar cast that includes Nicole Heaston in the {…}
Credit: Gregor Hohenberg/Sony Gramophone has announced the recordings that have advanced to the final round of the Gramophone Classical Music Awards 2020. For the purpose of this article, we will focus on vocal, choral, and opera categories. The first contestant in the opera category is the Barber’s “Vanessa,” performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourne Chorus, under the musical {…}
(Image Provided by Glyndebourne) Glyndebourne has announced new programming for its Open House streaming service. In addition to presenting Mozart and Da Ponte’s trilogy between May 24 and June 13, the company will also be showcasing two unique works spanning hundreds of years. On June 14, the company will be present “Vanessa” in collaboration with OperaVision. The operatic thriller hails {…}
(Credit: Tristram Kenton) Marquee TV is set to present the Glyndebourne Festival’s production of “Vanessa” on Saturday, May 16. The broadcast is an exclusive for Marquee TV and stars Emma Bell in the title role alongside Edgaras Montvidas as Anatol, Rosalind Plowright as the Old Baroness, Virginie Verrez as Erika, Donnie Ray Albert as the Old Doctor, William Thomas Nicholas, {…}
Samuel Barber was one of the great American composers of the 1900s. Born on March 9, 1910, he grew up in Pennsylvania and expressed great interest in music from an early age. He composed his first work “Sadness” at age seven and at age 10 attempted his first opera “The Rose Tree.” He became even more serious about composition throughout {…}
The Glyndebourne Festival has announced that several productions will be screened during this summer’s festival. The performances will be showcased in cinemas across the UK or online for international audiences; the live streams online will be straight from the festival’s website. This year the operas on offer to a wider range of audiences will be “Madama Butterfly,” “Vanessa,” and “Saul.” {…}
When you sing a major part of your career with one theater, you get to experience a ton of major moments in said organization’s history. Rosalind Elias, born on March 13, 1929, was such an artist, experiencing a major part of her artist life at the Metropolitan Opera. In sum, she showed up on the Met’s stage 687 times between {…}
First premiering on January 15, 1958, Samuel Barber’s “Vanessa” draws inspiration from Isak Dinesen’s novella “Seven Gothic Tales.” At its premiere, “Vanessa” was praised for being a grand opera penned by an American composer, though later critics, comparing it to more famous works, insist that the work is American only insofar as Barber himself was born in the country. The {…}