Vuvu Mpofu, Sophie Rennert, Matteo Ivan Rašić, Ewa Vesin, Soloman Howard & Scott Hendricks Lead Opera Vlaanderen’s 2026-27 Season

The Opera Vlaanderen has announced its 2026-27 season. Opera Thomas Verstraeten’s “The Uprising of the Facases-The Parade” will be performed. Performance Date: Sept. 12, 2026 Louis Andriessen’s “De Materie” will star Elmar Gilbertsson, Katrien Baerts, and Lies Pauwels. Bas Wiegers conducts the production by Phia Ménard. Performance Dates: Sept. 16-27, 2026 Francesco Corti conducts Gluck’s “Orphée et Eurydice” with Sophie Rennert, {…}

Dec 9, 2025

Metropolitan Opera 2025-26 Review: Porgy and Bess

On December 2, 2025, the Metropolitan Opera delivered a ray of sunshine with a jubilant opening of Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess.” Last seen on the Met stage in their 2021 season, this year’s run featured new and returning artists who all came together for something as uplifting as it was exciting. In regard to James Robinson’s production, many of my {…}

Nov 14, 2025

Alfred Walker, Brittany Renee, Denyce Graves, Latonia Moore & Leah Hawkins Lead Metropolitan Opera’s ‘Porgy and Bess’ Revival

(Credit: Ken Howard / Metropolitan Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to revive Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” for the first time since 2019 in James Robinson’s production. The opera will open on Dec. 2 and be performed 13 times. The production will feature conductor Kwamé Ryan in his company debut, leading a cast that includes bass-baritone Alfred Walker and soprano {…}

Feb 27, 2025

Vuvu Mpofu, Zachary Nelson & Michael Chioldi Lead Pittsburgh Opera’s 2025-26 Season

Pittsburgh Opera has announced its 2025-26 season. Puccini’s “La Bohème” will open the season and will star Zachary Nelson, Daniel O’Hearn, Matthew Soibelman, Erik Nordstrom, Kevin Glavin, and Vuvu Mpofu. Antony Walker conducts the production by Kristine McIntyre. Performance Dates: Oct. 18-26, 2025 Gregory Spears and Greg Pierce’s “Fellow Travelers” will star Erik Nordstrom, Logan Wagner, Shannon Crowley, Matthew Soibelman, {…}

Mar 1, 2024

Vuvu Mpofu Leads Pittsburgh Opera’s ‘La Traviata’

Pittsburgh Opera is set to perform Verdi’s “La Traviata” for the first time in seven years. The opera is set to be performed by Vuvu Mpofu in her Pittsburgh debut, Duke Kim, also making his Pittsburgh Opera debut and Michael Chioldi. The cast also includes Julia Swan Laird, Fran Daniel Laucerica, Brandon Bell, Evan Lazdowski, Oren Gradus, and Leah Heater. Antony Walker will {…}

Feb 7, 2024

Teatro dell’Opera di Roma to Present ‘Gianni Schicchi / L’heure espagnole’

The Teatro dell’Opera di Roma is set to present a double bill “Gianni Schicchi / L’heure espagnole.” The production will be directed by Ersan Mondtag and conducted by Michele Mariotti. “Gianni Schicchi” will star Carlo Lepore, Vuvu Mpofu, Sonia Ganassi, and Giovanni Sala. It will be rounded by Ya-Chung Huang (Gherardo), Roberto Accurso (Betto), Nicola Ulivieri (Simone), Daniele Terenzi (Marco), Domenico {…}

Feb 22, 2023

Denyce Graves, Vuvu Mpofu, Emily Richter & Marjorie Owens Lead Pittsburgh Opera’s 2023-24 Season

The Pittsburgh Opera has announced its 2023-24 season. Opera Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” opens the season with Lunga Eric Hallam, John McCullough, Stephanie Lauricella, and Musa Nqungwana. Antony Walker conducts the production by Crystal Manich. Performance Dates: October 14, 17, 20, 22, 2023 Kyle Albertson, Marjorie Owens, Daniel O’Hearn, and Leah Heater lead Wagner’s “The Flying Dutchman.” Antony Walker {…}

Jun 20, 2022

Glyndebourne Festival Opera Review 2022: La Bohème

Photo credit: © Glyndebourne Productions Ltd. “La bohème”, as the archetypal verismo opera, tends to resist stagings that take it much beyond the confines of nineteenth-century Paris, and indeed non-naturalistic approaches to the work. (Audiences tend to resist them too.) The two most successful in London recently have been John Copley’s recently retired version at the Royal Opera House – {…}

Mar 9, 2022

Vuvu Mpofu & Tatjana Schneider Headline Theater St. Gallen’s ‘La Traviata’

(Credit: Gerard Collett) Theater St. Gallen is set to showcase Verdi’s “La Traviata” starting on March 19, 2022. The showcase, which will be presented in the UMIBAU venue, will be directed by Nina Russi who has no intention of setting the opera in its original 19th-century milieu. Instead, she will present the opera in a newer time period noting in {…}

Sep 13, 2021

Artist of the Week: Vuvu Mpofu

(Credit: Richard Hubert Smith) On Sept. 18, Switzerland’s Theater St. Gallen will open a new production of Missy Mazzoli‘s 2016 “Breaking the Waves,” one of the most acclaimed operas of recent years. This run of performances will mark the first time the country presents the work, which will bring a cast of rising stars including Vuvu Mpofu. Mpofu will interpret {…}

Oct 19, 2020

Diana Damrau, Denyce Graves, Isabel Leonard, Terrence Blanchard, Morris Robinson Headline Top 10 Operas to Stream This Week

This week climaxes in World Opera Day on Oct. 25. So in leading up to that momentous celebration (which will feature half of the entries on this list), our recommendations will spotlight diversity in the opera world, offering up audiences a chance to check out works by and featuring BIPOC composers and performers as well as unique performance experiences that {…}