Washington National Opera Announces 2014-2015 Season - FLORENCIA IN THE AMAZON, LA BOHEME and More

Washington National Opera (WNO), led by Artistic Director Francesca Zambello, today announced its 2014-2015 season. It includes the company premiere of Daniel Catán's Spanish-language Florencia in the Amazon, a brand-new production of Puccini's classic La bohème, the company premiere of Rachel Portman's family opera The Little Prince, an English-language production of Poulenc's 20th-century drama Dialogues of the Carmelites, a revival of Wagner's epic The Flying Dutchman, and an acclaimed new-to- Washington staging of Rossini's Cinderella. A third season of the American Opera Initiative, including the world premiere of Penny by two alumni of the program, continues WNO's efforts to commission new works and expand the American repertory. Highlights from the 2014-2015 season will be performed by the WNO Orchestra and special guests at a free preview concert on Wednesday, May 14, 2014 at 6 p.m. in the Kennedy Center Opera House.

"Our 2014-2015 season is eclectic, inspiring, intellectually engaging, wildly funny, and something that cannot be seen in any other opera house in America," said WNO Artistic Director Francesca Zambello. "We are trying to bring our audiences the best mix of rising American singers, including those from our Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program, with the biggest international stars. The result is a season that provides a compelling overview of opera for bothpassionate fans and newcomers alike."

WNO's 2014-2015 season opens with the late Mexican-American composer Daniel Catán's mesmerizing opera Florencia in the Amazon, September 20-28, 2014 in the Opera House. Inspired by the magical realism of Nobel Prize-winning Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez, Florencia was the first-ever Spanish-language commission by major American opera companies and was an instant success when it premiered in Houston in 1996. Starring in the title role as a famous opera singer returning to her homeland is two-time Grammy Award® winning soprano Christine Goerke, who was last seen at WNO as Chrysothemis in Elektra (2008) and who is much in demand in the world's leading opera houses. WNO Artistic Director Francesca Zambello, who directed the world premiere, revisits her original staging for the work's Washington premiere, which will be conducted by Carolyn Kuan, the music director of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, in her WNO debut. This is the first Spanish-language work WNO has presented in 10 seasons.

Puccini's classic La bohème returns to the Opera House for the first time in seven seasons in a brand-new production directed by acclaimed British director Jo Davies, November 1-15, 2014. A sweeping tale of young bohemians struggling to fulfill their artistic dreams, find love, and stay warm through a harsh Parisian winter, La bohème is one of the world's most beloved operas and will be presented at WNO in a traditional and opulent new production, featuring sets by Lee Savage and costumes by Jennifer Moeller, two young American designers new to WNO's ranks. The WNO Orchestra will be led by WNO Music Director Philippe Auguin; Timothy Myers, artistic director and principal conductor of North Carolina Opera, will conduct select performances in his company debut. The cast features an array of fresh faces new to WNO, plus many returning favorites.

A special Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Performance of La bohème is presented in the Opera House on Friday, November 14, 2014 and features current singers and alumni of WNO's Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program. Complete casting for this special performance will be announced in the coming months.

The winter season of WNO again takes on a decidedly American flavor, beginning with the third season of the American Opera Initiative, WNO's commissioning program for emerging composers and librettists. WNO presents an evening featuring the world premieres of three 20-minute operas on Friday, November 21, 2014 in the Terrace Theater. Each opera focuses on a contemporary American theme, and once again the composers and librettists will work with a trio of mentors: conductor Anne Manson, composer Jake Heggie, and librettist Mark Campbell. The cast includes members of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program. More information about the composer-librettist teams selected for the American Opera Initiative will be announced in the coming months.

Continuing its tradition of family opera during the holiday season, WNO is proud to present the company premiere of The Little Prince, December 19-21, 2014 in the Terrace Theater. Featuring a score by Academy Award® winner Rachel Portman (Emma), an English- language libretto by playwright Nicholas Wright (His Dark Materials), and direction by WNO Artistic Director Francesca Zambello, this family-friendly opera is based on the beloved children's book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. The cast includes members of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program and also features the return of the WNO Children's Chorus, which was seen in the 2013-2014 season's sold-out world premiere of the holiday family opera.

The WNO's winter season concludes with another world premiere under the auspices of the American Opera Initiative: Penny, an hour-long opera by composer Douglas Pew and librettist Dara Weinberg, January 23 and 24, 2015 in the Terrace Theater. Pew and Weinberg are returning alumni of the American Opera Initiative; their 20-minute work A Game of Hearts had its world premiere during the program's first season in November 2012. Penny is an original story developed by Weinberg about a woman with a disability who discovers her voice and her talent for music, and the ensuing conflict with her family as she grows more independent. Penny will be conducted by Anne Manson and directed by Alan Paul, the Associate Director of Washington's Shakespeare Theatre Company.

Following a winter season of new American work, WNO's spring season features three classics from the operatic canon. First is the company premiere of Poulenc's mid-20th century masterpiece Dialogues of the Carmelites, February 21 to March 10, 2015 in the Opera House. Inspired by actual events, the opera concerns an order of Carmelite nuns who refuse to renounce their beliefs in the wake of the French Revolution, with tragic consequences. The cast includes the WNO debuts of two rising sopranos, Layla Claire and Leah Crocetto, as well as the return of American mezzo-sopranos Dolora Zajick (in her role debut as Madame de Croissy) and Washington favorite Elizabeth Bishop (Tristan and Isolde, 2013). This WNO production, originally seen at Opéra National de Paris, is directed by WNO Artistic Director Francesca Zambello and the WNO Orchestra is led by renowned maestro Patrick Summers, who returns to WNO for the first time since 1997. The opera will be performed in an English-language translation approved by the composer.

In anticipation of Wagner's epic Ring cycle during the 2015-2016 season, WNO presents the composer's early masterwork The Flying Dutchman, March 7-21, 2015 in the Opera House. This revival of WNO's striking production, directed by Stephen Lawless and last seen at WNO in 2008, features leading American bass-baritone Eric Owens in his first staged performances as the Dutchman. The cast also features powerhouse American tenor Jay Hunter Morris (the Metropolitan Opera's Ring cycle), German soprano Christiane Libor, and Estonian bass Ain Anger in their WNO debuts. Returning WNO favorites Alan Held and Peter Volpe will sing select performances. The WNO Orchestra will be led by WNO Music Director Philippe Auguin, who continues his exploration of the Wagnerian repertoire at WNO in anticipation of WNO's Ring cycle. Eric Weimer, who has prepared 13 different productions of Wagner's Ring cycle, makes his WNO debut conducting two performances.

Concluding the 2014-2015 season is a new-to-Washington production of Rossini's Cinderella (La Cenerentola), May 9-21, 2015 in the Opera House. A perfect springtime treat for the entire family, this clever romantic comedy adapts the familiar fairy tale in new ways: bracelets replace glass slippers, a philosophical tutor stands in for the fairy godmother, and six adorable dancing rats serve as a makeshift Greek chorus. The thrilling cast features 2013 Richard Tucker Award winner Isabel Leonard, one of today's most in-demand mezzo-sopranos, who makes her WNO debut with this production. Irish mezzo-soprano Tara Erraught also makes her WNO debut singing select performances. Gifted Italian conductor Speranza Scappucci makes her company debut leading the WNO Orchestra in Rossini's captivating bel canto score. The imaginative and bright production from the Barcelona-based theater group Els Comediants, designed by Joan Guillén and staged by Joan Font in their WNO debuts, has been a hit with audiences in Houston, Cardiff, Barcelona, Geneva, Brussels, Toronto, and Seattle.

Throughout the season, WNO offers special performances to complement the main works of the season. Kicking off the season is An Evening with Stephen Costello and Ailyn Pérez, Wednesday, September 10, 2014 in the Terrace Theater. Husband and wife duo, frequent co-stars, and Richard Tucker Award winners tenor Stephen Costello and Ailyn Pérez, who star together in the current season's production of The Elixir of Love, present an evening of operatic love duets and arias, as well as stories from their life on the road as opera's most in-demand "love couple."

Prior to his performance in The Flying Dutchman, bass-baritone Eric Owens takes the Terrace Theater stage for An Evening of Jazz Standards with Eric Owens, Saturday, February28, 2015. Owens shows another side of his vocal talents and sings a program of jazz standards, including songs made famous by Billy Eckstine and Johnny Hartman.

The Domingo-Cafritz Young Artists continue their new annual tradition in a specialprogram of scenes and arias from favorite operas in Stars of Tomorrow: The Domingo-Cafritz Young Artists in Concert, Friday, March 20, 2015 in the Opera House. Taking a break from his role in The Flying Dutchman, Eric Owens offers his vocal mentorship to WNO's rising stars-and also showcases his first-rate skills as the conductor of the WNO Orchestra in this exciting concert.

Two months before she makes her WNO debut in the title role of Cinderella, acclaimed mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard joins multiple Grammy® -winning guitarist Sharon Isben in an intimate recital of music by Spanish composers including Manuel de Falla, Enrique Madriguera, Joaquín Rodrigo, and many others. An Evening with Sharon Isben and Isabel Leonard, Tuesday, March 24, 2015 in the Terrace Theater, is part of the Kennedy Center's Iberian Suite: arts remix across continents and Fortas Chamber Music Concerts.

Test and expand your Broadway knowledge with our new game - The Broadway Match-Up! How well do you know your Broadway casting trivia?	Play the Daily Game, explore current shows, and delve into past decades like the 2000s, 80s, and the Golden Age. Challenge your friends and see where you rank!
How well do you know your Tony Awards history? Take our never-ending quiz of nominations and winner history and challenge your friends.	Can you beat your friends? Play today’s daily Broadway word game, featuring a new theatrically inspired word or phrase every day!