Palm Beach Opera Announces 2018 Mainstage Season and Gala

Palm Beach Opera is thrilled to announce the 2018 mainstage opera season, which will include performances of Giacomo Puccini's Tosca January 26-28, Leonard Bernstein's Candide February 23-25, and Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart March 23-25. All mainstage opera performances will take place at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach.

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"The 2018 season showcases a wonderful mix of two well-known, beloved operas and one Palm Beach Opera premiere," said Daniel Biaggi, General Director. "We are delighted to welcome so many internationally acclaimed performers to Palm Beach in important productions, sure to excite our audiences. Building on this season's growth of our subscriber family and patrons overall, we anticipate several sold-out performances again."

The mainstage season opens January 26-28, 2018 with Giacomo Puccini's Tosca; a tragic tale of a romance complicated by dirty politics and betrayal. Soprano Keri Alkema, whose lirico-spinto soprano voice has been praised by the New York Times as an "appealing brew of dark and creamy colors", portrays the title role on January 26 & 28. On January 27, Alexandra Loutsion returns to the Palm Beach Opera stage as Floria Tosca, following her successful performance this year as Cio-Cio San inMadama Butterfly. The lead tenor role of Cavaradossi is shared by Riccardo Massi (January 26 & 28), who recently performed the same role at Royal Opera House Covent Garden; and Adam Diegel (January 27), who thrilled the audience this year as Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly. Scarpia is portrayed by Michael Chioldi, who's been seen on the Palm Beach Opera stages as Rigoletto,Macbeth, Germont (La Traviata), and other roles, as well as Russian baritone Alexandr Krasnov. The cast and orchestra will be led by Palm Beach Opera Chief Conductor David Stern; stage director of the production designed by Jean-Pierre Ponnelle is Fenlon Lamb, who was responsible for the critically acclaimed Don Pasquale and IL Barbiere di Sivigila at Palm Beach Opera.

From February 23-25, Palm Beach Opera celebrates the 100th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein's birth with his comic operetta Candide, in the first ever fully staged Bernstein work presented by Palm Beach Opera, in a colorful multi-media production. Chief Conductor David Stern and friend of the Bernstein family will be at the musical helm. Recent Juilliard graduate and upcoming tenor Miles Mykkanen sings the title role of Candide in his Palm Beach Opera debut. Also making her company debut, soprano Alisa Jordheim, lauded for her "flawless coloratura" and "pinpoint high C's," portrays the character Cunegonde, while former Palm Beach Opera Benenson Young Artist Tobias Greenhalgh plays Maximilian. Adding luster to the cast, opera legend mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves returns to Palm Beach Opera as The Old Lady.

On March 23-25, Palm Beach Opera presents Mozart's poignant masterpiece Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), a new co-production between Palm Beach Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Opera Philadelphia, and San Diego Opera under the direction of Stephen Lawless. Set and Costume designs are by Leslie Travers, with Lighting Design by Thomas C. Hase. Antonino Fogliani returns to conduct the Palm Beach Opera Orchestra and an international cast that includes Italian Marko Mimica in his Palm Beach Opera debut as Figaro, and Janai Brugger, Palm Beach Opera's Juliette in Roméo et Juliette and Norina in Don Pasquale, as the bride-to-be, Susanna. The Countess is sung by Caitlin Lynch, whose performance of Mozart's leading ladies at the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, Glyndebourne, and many more have drawn consistent praise. Multi-media artist David Adam Moore, praised for his "lush baritone," sings the Count, and Irene Roberts, graduate of the Benenson Young Artist Program who has gone on to the San Francisco Opera, Metropolitan Opera, and Berlin State Opera, returns to Palm Beach Opera as Cherubino.

The annual Children's Performance, a one-hour abridged version of Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), takes place on Saturday afternoon, March 24, starring members of the Benenson Young Artist Program and the Apprentice Artist Program, conducted by Associate Conductor and Chorus Master Greg Ritchey.

Palm Beach Opera's 2018 Gala is scheduled for February 15 at The Breakers in Palm Beach, featuring a concert by internationally-known superstar soprano Sondra Radvanovsky, just announced as opening the Metropolitan Opera 2017-2018 season in the title role of Norma. Festivities include a cocktail reception, gourmet dinner, champagne dessert buffet, and evening entertainment.

Additional events scheduled are the annual Liederabend performance, the Palm Beach Opera Guild Annual Dinner, Opening Night Dinners, and the Lunch & Learn series. Details for these as well as other community engagement programs will be released at a later date, and will be available on the Palm Beach Opera website.

2018 Palm Beach Opera Mainstage Season

January 26, 27, 28m, 2018
TOSCA
by Giacomo Puccini
Kravis Center for the Performing Arts

February 15, 2018
2018 GALA - AN EVENING WITH Sondra Radvanovsky
The Breakers, Palm Beach

February 23, 24, 25m, 2018
CANDIDE
by Leonard Bernstein

Kravis Center for the Performing Arts

March 23, 24, 25m, 2018
LE NOZZE DI FIGARO
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Kravis Center for the Performing Arts

March 24m, 2018

CHILDREN'S PERFORMANCE - LE NOZZE DI FIGARO (abridged version)

by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Kravis Center for the Performing Arts

Palm Beach Opera is dedicated to producing live opera at an international standard of excellence and to enriching the life of the communities it serves with a diverse offering of educational programs. Founded in 1961, the fully professional Palm Beach Opera presents mainstage performances at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach and is a proud member of OPERA America and the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County.