Will Liverman, Emily Fons, Emily Pogorelc Headline Valhalla Media’s New Live Stream Program

By David Salazar

Valhalla Media will launch a brand new streaming platform aimed at providing live opera performances to audiences worldwide.

On June 26, the company will feature baritone Will Liverman alongside pianist Paul Sanchez in a program centered on African-American composers including Leslie Adams, Margaret Bonds, Damien Snead, and Robert Owens. There will also be a world premiere by Shawn Okpebholo.

On June 27, the organization will present a live stream of “Hansel and Gretel” from the Studebaker Theater in Downtown Chicago. The performance will star Emily Fons and Emily Pogorelc with conductor Eric Weimer leading the performance from the piano. Other cast members include Allan Glassman, Alexandra LoBianco, Craig Irvin, Annie Rosen, and Jeni Houser.

While most companies have been providing live streamed performances free of cost, Valhalla Media will be allowing a “pay what you can” price structure with a recommended price of $14.99.

“As working singers, we devoted ourselves to building this platform to help lift up and reinvigorate our artistic community in a time of crisis—so that we may find ways to safely get our fellow artists back to work, and to deliver the type of unparalleled remote live music experience that classical music fans the whole world over truly deserve,” said Nikolas Wenzel, co-founder of Valhalla Media Live. “What we believe will be truly revolutionary about our platform is not just the quality of the product that we offer, but that we are also able to work directly with artists to program repertoire that they are typically not offered the opportunity to perform in other recital or concert settings. This is an opportunity for us to showcase the true diversity of our community of colleagues at a time when the voices of minority and underrepresented artists must be heard. We are uniquely positioned to present underperformed and untraditional repertoire, and showcase the personalities of the artists that are on America’s stages while humanizing our art form. This platform was built by artists, for artists, and with today’s modern audience in mind.”

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