STAGE TUBE: Sneak Peek at Rehearsals for Odyssey Opera's 5 Hour Wagner's RIENZI

ODYSSEY OPERA, a new, Boston-based opera company dedicated to presenting adventurous repertoire, debuts Sunday, September 15th at Boston's Jordan Hall offering a five-hour concert performance of Wagner's rarely heard opera "Rienzi." In celebration of the bicentennial of Richard Wagner's birth (1813-1883), Odyssey salutes one of history's greatest and most controversial opera composers in a spectacular Wagnerian event performed in true Bayreuth fashion. Check out a sneak peek at rehearsals below!

Led by Conductor Gil Rose, "Rienzi" will be performed by the Odyssey Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Boston's Lorelei Ensemble and an international cast headed by Lithuanian tenor Kristian Benedikt, one of the world's most promising and exciting dramatic tenors of his generation, making his North American debut. "This marks my second Wagnerian role," says Benedikt. "'Rienzi' is a pathetically big antic tragedy. I'm sure that everyone who attends this performance will leave happy." Cast members include: Metropolitan Opera soprano Elisabete Matos, Margaret Jane Wray who was recently acclaimed for her performances in Seattle Opera ring cycle, Grammy nominee Kristopher Irmiter, Stephen Salters, David Kravitz, Ethan Bremner, Kristen Watson, Robert Honeysucker, and Frank Kelley.