Robert Little News

In 2002, I was indirectly introduced to La Boheme. My introduction came when I was introduced to a musical that had come out and became a phenomenon on Broadway just 6 years earlier. The show quickly became a favorite musical of mine and showed me the impact that theatre can have on people. Since then I've seen Rent multiple times, but did not get the opportunity to see a production of La Boheme until Des Moines Metro Opera's production which opened on June 28. While it would be easy to talk about all the influences La Boheme had on Rent I going to do my best not to, and to focus on this breathtaking production.

Henri Murger, the author of the original French book, described Bohemia as bordered on the North by hope, work, and gaiety, on the South by necessity and courage, and on the West and East by slander and the hospital. His characters, all based on real people he knew, wanted to free society of its strict bourgeois moral code and some of their ideas have taken root over the century and a half since the book's publication.

Thrilling music, exciting new voices, and compelling theater will launch Sarasota Opera into its 58th Winter Festival Season on Saturday, February 11th, 2017. This will be the company's first season in 28 years to not include any operas by Giuseppe Verdi.

The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) opens its new Gallery of Modern Design on Saturday, December 3, 2016. Featuring the iconic work of designers including Frank Lloyd Wright and Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann among others, the gallery traces the development of design in Europe and North America, highlighting six design movements from 1910 to 1965.

Sarasota Opera – Thrilling music, exciting new voices, and compelling theater will launch Sarasota Opera into its 58th Season of presenting grand opera on the south Florida gulf coast, the first season in 28 years to not include any operas by Giuseppe Verdi.

General and Artistic Director Michael Egel and the Board of Directors have announced casting for the operas of the 42nd Summer Festival Season. The three, full-scale grand operas will be presented in 15 performances between June 27 and July 20, 2014 at the Blank Performing Arts Center in Indianola Iowa. A fourth production will run for 3 performances on July 10 and 19 at the newly renovated Des Moines Social Club in Des Moines as part of the company's newly-minted 2nd Stages Series. The Summer Festival Season repertory includes the return of a timeless operatic classic paired with two operas which will be company premieres - the first is a modern masterpiece and the second is a sparkling farce by opera's greatest comedic composer, Rossini. It's truly a season for everyone from first-time opera-goers to lifelong devotees highlighted by Des Moines Metro Opera's exceptional attention to details, including casting some of the most remarkable vocal talent in America today.

AFI Fest 2012 have announced the entire lineup for the annual festival, set to open Nov. 1 and conclude Nov. 8. The 136 films chosen are listed below: