Richard Wagner News

This month, one of America's most controversial men takes center stage in a new play by Joan Beber called In Bed With Roy Cohn. Directed by Katrin Hilbe, In Bed With Roy Cohn will begin performances tonight, August 25th, and open on September 2nd and will run through October 3rd at Theater Row's Lion Theatre (410 West 42nd Street).

They've done it! Little Union Avenue Opera and its leader Scott Schoonover bring home the gold! They have triumphed over that colossus of all operatic colossi-Wagner's Ring Cycle! They entered the battle wielding the magic sword of talent and determination and, just like Siegfried, they have conquered this giant, this dragon of an opus and forced it to yield a pure golden 'Ring'! Their current production of 'Gotterdammerung', the final work in Wagner's vast tetralogy, is a showcase for some magnificent voices. Wagner would be pleased.

Come experience the power of music on a whole new level at the Seattle Opera premiere of Giuseppe Verdi's Nabucco this month. Viewers will be visually transported to ancient Babylon through magnificent costumes, awe-inspiring projections, and a new staging configuration that brings the music and performers closer to the audience than ever before.

Arizona Opera opens its 2015/16 Season as the first U.S. opera company to present the comic operetta Arizona Lady.

Tenor Jonas Kaufmann issued a statement on his Facebook page, telling fans not to buy an upcoming release of a Puccini album from his former label, Decca. He wants fans to wait until the 'real' Puccini album is released with Sony on September 11, stating (translated in English):

This August, one of America's most controversial men takes center stage in a new play by Joan Beber called In Bed With Roy Cohn. Directed by Katrin Hilbe, In Bed With Roy Cohn will begin performances on August 25th and open on September 2nd and will run through October 3rd at Theater Row's Lion Theatre (410 West 42nd Street).

Apotheosis Opera has announced their inaugural production will be a fully-staged English translation of Richard Wagner's early masterpiece TANNHÄUSER on Friday, July 31, 2015, at 7pm and Sunday, August 2, 2015, at 3pm at the theatre of El Museo del Barrio (1230 5th Avenue).

Come experience the power of music on a whole new level at the Seattle Opera premiere of Giuseppe Verdi's Nabucco this August. Viewers will be visually transported to ancient Babylon through magnificent costumes, awe-inspiring projections, and a new staging configuration that brings the music and performers closer to the audience than ever before.

Blue Man Group, in conjunction with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (CYSO), will return to the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park for a collaborative performance tonight, July 1 at 6:30 p.m. The free public performance will feature a program of full orchestral works performed by CYSO's inaugural summer orchestra, as well as collaborative performances and thrilling surprises with Blue Man Group.

Blue Man Group, in conjunction with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (CYSO), will return to the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park for a collaborative performance tonight, July 1 at 6:30 p.m. The free public performance will feature a program of full orchestral works performed by CYSO's inaugural summer orchestra, as well as collaborative performances and thrilling surprises with Blue Man Group.

Presenting Apotheosis Opera, a new addition to New York's startup opera scene. Apotheosis Opera brings fresh energy to the opera world by mounting fully-staged, English language summer productions of large-scale works. Co-founded by Matthew Jaroszewicz – who studies with David Hayes in the Master of Music program in Orchestral Conducting at Mannes College of Music – Apotheosis marks its bold debut at New York's Theater of El Museo del Barrio on July 31, with a second performance on Aug. 2, with “Tannhäuser,” in English.

Morningside Opera, the NYC-based opera company that most recently presented the acclaimed Here Be Sirens and ¡Figaro! (90210), teams up with Harlem Opera Theater and The Harlem Chamber Players to present a concert of the long-lost and historical opera VOODOO, by African-American composer Harry Lawrence Freeman, with a 30-piece orchestra and full chorus. Gregory Hopkins is the conductor. Last performed in NYC in 1928, VOODOO, will play two concert performances only tonight, June 26 and tomorrow, June 27, 2015 at 7PM at Miller Theatre at Columbia University (2960 Broadway, at the corner of Broadway and 116th street) in Manhattan.

Blue Man Group, in conjunction with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (CYSO), will return to the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park for a collaborative performance on Wednesday, July 1 at 6:30 p.m. The free public performance will feature a program of full orchestral works performed by CYSO's inaugural summer orchestra, as well as collaborative performances and thrilling surprises with Blue Man Group.

Juilliard Dance, under the direction of Lawrence Rhodes, opens its 2015-16 season in December 2015 with New Dances: Edition 2015 featuring four world premiere dances by innovative choreographers Helen Simoneau (First-Year Dancers); Aszure Barton (Second-Year Dancers); Zvi Gotheiner (Third-Year Dancers); and Kyle Abraham (Fourth-Year Dancers).

The City of Seattle has named a street in honor of Speight Jenkins, General Director of Seattle Opera from 1983 to 2014.

Metropolitan Opera singer Janinah Burnett and Joanna Marie Ford and Steven Wallace will perform the leading roles in Morningside Opera, Harlem Opera Theater and The Harlem Chamber Players concert production of VOODOO, the long-lost and historical opera by African American composer Harry Lawrence Freeman. They will be joined by Crystal Charles, James R. Hopkins III, Barry L. Robinson, Darian Worrall, a full chorus and 30-piece orchestra.  The production is directed by Melissa Crespo and conducted by Gregory Hopkins.   Last performed in NYC in 1928, VOODOO, will play two concert performances only on June 26 and 27, 2015 at 7PM at Miller Theatre at Columbia University (2960 Broadway, at the corner of Broadway and 116th street) in Manhattan. Terrance McKnight of WQXR Radio is the evening's host. Tickets are $25 advance/$30 at the door, with discount tickets available for students and seniors at $20. They can be purchased by visiting http://voodoo.brownpapertickets.com/ or by calling 800-838-3006.

Houston, June 3, 2015— Houston Grand Opera announced at its annual meeting on Tuesday evening that its 2014–15 season sustained the increased attendance and fundraising levels achieved over the previous four years of consistent expansion. During its 60th anniversary season HGO presented eight main-stage productions, as it did in 2013–14, for a total of forty-eight performances.  Attendance matched that of last season while the organization's historic comprehensive campaign raised $172.9 million, beating its $165 million goal.

The Joyce Theater Foundation, Inc. is thrilled to present the New York debut of the Polish National Ballet, Poland's leading ballet company based in Warsaw, from June 16-21. The company, under the artistic direction of Krzysztof Pastor, will present a program of three works: two by Pastor (Adagio & Scherzo, a US Premiere and Moving Rooms, a New York Premiere) and Emanuel Gat's acclaimed Rite of Spring.  Tickets range in price from $10-$49 ($26-$37 for Joyce Theater members), and can be purchased through JoyceCharge at 212-242-0800 or via the internet at www.joyce.org.  The Joyce Theater is located at 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street.

Forget what might be known or understood regarding Richard Wagner's epic The Ring Cycle- a legendary series of four complete operas he composed over 26 years ( 1848-1874) that requires more than 18 hours to perform. Instead enjoy The Skylight Ring, Skylight Music Theatre's cheeky, slightly irreverent yet oh so entertaining two hour and four actor version on the Studio Stage at the Broadway Theatre Center.

Blue Man Group, in conjunction with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (CYSO), will return to the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park for a collaborative performance on Wednesday, July 1 at 6:30 p.m. The free public performance will feature a program of full orchestral works performed by CYSO's inaugural summer orchestra, as well as collaborative performances and thrilling surprises with Blue Man Group.