After Ukraine’s Ambassador to Switzerland Irina Venediktova sent letters to members of the Zürich Cantonal Council demanding that performances by Anna Netrebko and other artists at the Zurich Opera House be canceled, the Zürich Opera has noted that it will move forward with performances. According to Die Weltwoche, Venediktova expressed “deep concern” and also noted that a “personal exchange” took {…}
Historically, Wagner stagings have stirred up controversy. They are–to put it bluntly–like a fashion show: seasonally recurrent, fanciful (for better or for worse), and tailored, if you will, to fit just about anything, the blatant as much as the abstruse. New productions, then, warrant a healthy degree of skepticism–especially when, as so often happens, the integrity of the work is {…}
ARTE TV will present Franz Léhar’s “The Land Of Smiles.” Piotr Beczala announced via social media that the recording from the Zurich opera will be streamed live at 11:45 European time. The tenor wrote, “‘The Land of Smiles’ by Franz Lehár, one of the most popular operettas, will be broadcasted on ARTE TV tomorrow at 23:45. This particular production, with {…}
The Zürich Opera has a new head of opera. According to reports, Michael Fichtenholz will take over the role during the 2018-19 season. He has previously worked as the opera director at the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe. Fichtenholz kicked of his career at the Moscow Philharmonic, the Russian National Orchestra and the Moscow Easter Festivals before joining the Moscow Bolshoi Theater {…}
Looks like Piotr Beczala could be returning to the role of “Lohengrin” soon rather than later. The tenor is set to appear in the Zurich production of the opera on Sunday, but not quite in the way you might expect. Tenor Brandon Jovanovich is calling in sick, forcing producer Andreas Homoki to step onstage to play the part. But he {…}