Brandon Jovanovich News

Compared to Dutch soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek as Katerina Ismailova in LADY MACBETH OF MTSENSK at the Met, Barbara Stanwyck and Lana Turner were couple of pikers in their film noir triumphs, “Double Indemnity” and “The Postman Always Rings Twice.” Westbroek kills her father-in-law with rat poison, strangles her husband with her lover's belt and, as the piece de resistence, drowns her lover's new girlfriend, while going under herself. And she has to do it all while effortlessly singing Shostakovich's demanding score. What a dame!

“To be blunt, Sergei is not a nice guy,” says tenor Brandon Jovanovich, talking about his current role at the Metropolitan Opera in Dmitri Shostakovich's LADY MACBETH OF MTENSEK. “He's the kind of fellow who's jovial and friendly one minute…and then you hear he's robbed a store. He uses and abuses people--we all know someone like that, don't we?” he adds, laughing.

Anthony Freud, general director of Lyric Opera of Chicago, today announced Memory and Reckoning, a confluence of activities related to the Chicago premiere of Mieczysaw Weinberg's The Passenger, on stage at Lyric February 24 through March 15. This poignant and gripping 20th-century masterpiece portrays the story of the Holocaust from the perspectives of both victim and perpetrator, and was only recently rediscovered after more than 40 years of suppression.

Beginning November 10, the Met will present a rare revival of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Shostakovich's controversial 1934 opera about an adulteress whose forbidden romance leads to murder and devastation. This season's performances will be conducted by James Conlon, who also led the work's Met premiere in 1994; it has only been revived once by the company, in 2000. Dutch soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek will sing her first Met performances of the central role, Katerina Ismailova, which she has sung to acclaim at numerous leading opera houses around the world. American tenor Brandon Jovanovich sings the role of Sergei, Katerina's lover. The revival of Graham Vick's 1994 production will also star Raymond Very as Zinovy Ismailov, Katerina's ineffectual husband, and Anatoli Kotscherga as her brutal father-in-law, Boris. Dutch tenor Frank van Aken will sing Sergei in the November 21 performance.

Brandon Jovanovich has agreed at short notice to step into the role of Don José in this evening's performance of Carmen, replacing Aleksandrs Antonenko, who is ill. Jovanovich is currently rehearsing for next month's revival of Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at the Met. He sang the October 13 performance of Carmen substituting for Antonenko as well.

Conductor James Conlon leads a rare revival of Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at the Metropolitan Opera in six performances beginning Monday, November 10, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. The cast for Graham Vick's production includes soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek in the title role as Katerina Ismailova, tenor Brandon Jovanovich as Sergei, tenor Raymond Very as Zinovy Ismailov, and baritone Anatoli Kotscherga as Boris Ismailov. Tenor Frank van Aken sings the role of Sergei in the November 21 performance.

Brandon Jovanovich has agreed at short notice to step into the role of Don José in this evening's performance of Carmen, replacing Aleksandrs Antonenko, who is ill. Jovanovich is currently at the Met rehearsing for next month's revival of Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.

Angela Meade - the face of Opera News's forthcoming annual "Diva" issue - dominates the New York cultural scene this season. In concert, the American soprano makes her New York Philharmonic debutunder Alan Gilbert's direction in Verdi's Requiem (Jan 15-17), and gives two performances at Carnegie Hall, first joining the Philadelphia Orchestra for Mahler's "Resurrection" Symphony (Oct 31), and then starring in Rossini's William Tell with Italy's Teatro Regio di Torino led by Gianandrea Noseda (Dec 7), in the penultimate stop on their North American tour.

Set in Tennessee around the time of the Dust Bowl, 'Susannah' takes its inspiration from a story in the book of Daniel. Composer Carlisle Floyd's decision to remove the original's redemptive prophet seems to condemn Christianity, but also gives his revised version the dramatic thrust needed to explore the human condition and turn out a masterpiece.

San Francisco Opera presents the Company premiere of Carlisle Floyd's two-act opera Susannah today, September 6 at the War Memorial Opera House.

Michael Tiknis, President and Managing Director of the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, today unveiled Beyond the Aria, a new performance series produced by Harris Theater in a unique first-time association with Lyric Unlimited, on the Pritzker Pavilion Stage at Millennium Park.

San Francisco Opera Guild presents an Insight Panel Discussion exploring Carlisle Floyd's iconic American opera Susannah. Insight Panels feature renowned cast and production team members, sharing behind-the-scenes experiences and inspirations during informal discussions. The Susannah Insight Panel provides the rare opportunity to learn about the opera directly from award-winning 88-year-old composer and librettist Carlisle Floyd. One of the foremost composers and librettists of opera in the United States, Floyd has written a total of 11 operas and is currently completing his twelfth. Joining Carlisle Floyd on the panel are San Francisco Opera General Director David Gockley, soprano Patricia Racette, director Michael Cavanagh and conductor Karen Kamensek. The discussion takes placeThursday, August 28 at 6 p.m. in the Concert Hall at San Francisco Conservatory of Music (50 Oak Street).

San Francisco Opera presents the Company premiere of Carlisle Floyd's two-act opera Susannah September 6 at the War Memorial Opera House. Soprano Patricia Racette returns to San Francisco Opera in her role debut as the innocent, strong-willed and falsely accused young woman Susannah Polk.

San Francisco Opera celebrates the opening of its 92nd Season on Friday, September 5, 2014 with a gala performance of Vincenzo Bellini's Norma, conducted by San Francisco Opera Music Director Nicola Luisotti and featuring an illustrious cast led by soprano Sondra Radvanovsky in the title role. The opening night festivities are highlighted by Opera Ball 2014: Passione, a benefit supporting the education programs of San Francisco Opera Guild and San Francisco Opera Education Department, and BRAVO! CLUB's Opening Night Gala.

The Collegiate Chorale will make its seventh appearance at the Verbier Festival from July 21-27, 2014, in concerts with Charles Dutoit, Yuri Temirkanov, Marc Minkowski, and Daniel Harding.

Houston Grand Opera drew the season to a close with hit new productions of Das Rheingold and Carmen that prompted CultureMap Houston to conclude: 'This is, without doubt, the epitome of early twenty-first century opera production. It's where we are going, and it's thrilling.'

Closing their 2013-14 Season, HGO is presenting Georges Bizet's acclaimed CARMEN. For this production, Award winning Broadway Director and Choreographer Rob Ashford took the reins and has created a CARMEN that is as beautiful as it is exciting.

Tomorrow, April 11, Houston Grand Opera presents Das Rheingold, launching the American debut of a visionary and groundbreaking treatment of Der Ring des Nibelungen by La Fura dels Baus. As the first staging of Wagner's epic cycle in HGO history, the event marks an important company milestone-one that HGO follows two weeks later with a new take on Carmen from Broadway sensation Rob Ashford. These two productions come at a time when HGO has once again been making headlines, not only for the world premiere of A Coffin in Egypt and an acclaimed revival of A Little Night Music, but by successfully appealing to new audiences. 'The most recent NEA survey shows that only 2% of Americans go to the opera each year. Yet HGO is bucking the trend. Since the 2009-10 season it has seen its attendances grow by 24 percent,' reported the Economist last month. As Houston History noted in a recent feature article, 'many arts programs across the nation are shutting down due to financial failure, [but] HGO has succeeded in remaining relevant.'

Thomas Hampson will be at Manhattan School of Music today, March 19th to give a vocal master class. This master class, a free event and open to the public, takes place at 4:00 p.m. in the School's Greenfield Recital Hall, and will be streamed live by going to http://dl.msmnyc.edu/live. The master class will be given in collaboration with MSM's world renowned Distance Learning and Recording Arts Department, headed by Christianne Orto, Dean of Distance Learning and Recording Arts at Manhattan School of Music.

Thomas Hampson will be at Manhattan School of Music on Wednesday, March 19th to give a vocal master class. This master class, a free event and open to the public, takes place at 4:00 p.m. in the School's Greenfield Recital Hall, and will be streamed live by going to http://dl.msmnyc.edu/live. The master class will be given in collaboration with MSM's world renowned Distance Learning and Recording Arts Department, headed by Christianne Orto, Dean of Distance Learning and Recording Arts at Manhattan School of Music.