(Credit: Javier del Real) The Teatro Real in Madrid is set to open Bellini’s rare “Il Pirata” on Saturday, Nov. 30. The opera premiered at the Teatro alla Scala in 1827 when the composer was only 26-years-old and became an overnight success. And while Bellini remained at the forefront of Bel Canto for the remainder of his short life, this {…}
Opera Australia has announced its 2020 Melbourne program, which will include staged operas, concert performances, and musicals. Operas Graeme Murphy will direct an “innovative and visually stunning” new production of Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly.” It will showcase how “the digital screens can be used to enhance the storytelling and opera experience,” says Artistic Director Lyndon Terracini in the press release. Japanese soprano Hiromi Omura {…}
The Teatro Municipale di Piacenza has announced its 2019-20 season featuring a number of new productions and one world premiere. Opera Maria Teresa Leva, Lucrezia Drei, Azer Zada, Francesco Cascione, Stefano Marchisio, and Maharram Huseynov star in Puccini’s “La Bohème.” The opera, which opens the season, is set to be conducted by Aldo Sisillo with legendary baritone Leo Nucci directing the new production. Performance {…}
The Fondazione I Teatri Reggio Emilia has announced its 2019-20 season. Francesca Dotto takes on the title role in Donizetti’s “Lucrezia Borgia” in a production by Andrea Bernard from the Donizetti Opera Festival. The cast will also include Marko Mimica, Francesco Castoro, and Varduhi Abrahamyan. Carla Delfrate conducts the production. Performance Dates: Dec. 6 & 8, 2019 The second production of the {…}
The holiday weekend is here and that means many companies are on hiatus. However, there are a number of festivals going on and a number of productions ending runs. Here is a look at some new productions and festival performances we are excited about. Mavra / Iolanta – Bayerische Staatsoper, Germany The Munich opera house presents a new production of a {…}
It has been announced that Vladimir Stoyanov will be replacing Luca Salsi in the Baden-Baden Festpielhaus’ Easter Festival production of Verdi’s “Otello.” The Bulgarian baritone will star as Iago in Robert Wilson’s new production, alongside Stuart Skelton in the title role, and Sonya Yoncheva as Desdemona. The production, which begins its run on April 13, will have its orchestration provided {…}
It’s the third weekend of the year and we have a number of great productions to recommend. For this weekend, we’re looking at three of Puccini’s most popular operas and two lesser-known classics that are getting new productions. La Bohème – Australian Opera, Australia Joyce El-Khoury takes on the title role of Mimì alongside Ivan Magrì as Rodolfo. Nicholas Milton conducts the production {…}
Bulgarian baritone Vladimir Stoyanov is one of the leading singers of his generation performing in many of the world’s leading companies. He has performed in such theaters as the Plovdiv Opera House, La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, Berlin State Opera, Vienna State Opera, Zürich Opera, Teatro Real, La Fenice, Teatro Regio, Teatro Massimo, Royal Swedish Opera, and San Francisco Opera, {…}
The Opera Orchestre National de Montpelier has announced its 2018-19 season featuring a vast array of repertoire. The season will feature established artists as well as rising stars. For this season announcement, we have only focused on the vocal events. Production Hervé’s “Mam’zelle Nitouche” opens the season with Laura Neumann, Damien Birgourdain, Samy Camps, and Olivier Py in the lead {…}
At the end of the final act, Otello has just killed Desdemona and he stands at the front of the stage, facing the audience. From the back of the stage Desdemona reappears and approaches Otello. Standing beside him, she simulates the taking of a knife from its sheath, raises it and plunges it into her belly, and Otello, taking a {…}
La Fenice opened its 2017-18 season with an interesting and courageous production of Verdi’s “Un Ballo in Maschera,” a production which under the direction of Gianmaria Aliverta aimed at producing a deeper reading of the work, one which sought to uncover the underlying structural political conflicts that led to the assassination of a political leader. Verdi and his librettist, Antonio {…}