Michael Sumuel

Review: PORGY AND BESS at Houston Grand Opera
by Armando Urdiales - Oct 25, 2025

As Houston performing arts ventures grow for the 2025-26 season, Houston Grand Opera surpasses them all with a thrilling 50th anniversary production of Gershwin's Porgy and Bess. Starring powerhouse performers Angel Blue and Michael Sumuel in the title roles, this theatrical staging further cements HGO's monolithic presence not only in Houston but in the world of opera at large.

Houston Grand Opera to Open Season with THE GERSHWINS’ PORGY AND BESS
by A.A. Cristi - Sep 25, 2025

Houston Grand Opera (HGO) will launch its 2025–26 season with The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, beginning October 24 at the Wortham Theater Center. The production is directed by Francesca Zambello.

Review: PORGY AND BESS at Kennedy Center
by David Friscic - May 27, 2025

The pivotal and star-crossed main characters and the Catfish Row community come alive in the highly influential, thought-provoking, and engrossing opera Porgy and Bess. This much discussed opera has its partisans and detractors but there is a distinct need to ponder and consider a work of this quality. This Washington National Opera production beautifully melds content and form in this story of a crippled man (Porgy) who must travel the lonely road (“When Gawd make cripple, He means him to be lonely. Night time, day time, He got to travel that lonesome road.”) to find wholeness with the easily gratified yet complex and caring Bess.

Tickets on Sale Now for PORGY AND BESS at Houston Grand Opera
by Chloe Rabinowitz - May 23, 2025

Houston Grand Opera is now offering single tickets to all performances of the Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess. Learn more about the production and see how to purchase tickets.

Interview: Theatre Life with Francesca Zambello
by Elliot Lanes - May 23, 2025

Today’s subject Francesca Zambello is currently living her theatre life as the Artistic Director of Washington National Opera (WNO). She has been in the position since 2012. Her production of Porgy and Bess begins performances this evening in the Opera House at Kennedy Center where it will play through May 31st.

Review: I Want a Divorce from the Met’s NOZZE DI FIGARO!
by Richard Sasanow - Apr 2, 2025

What’s a Mozart lover to do? Great music and a more-than-decent cast don’t necessarily add up to an enchanting night at the opera. Yes, it’s true that LE NOZZE DI FIGARO ('The Marriage of Figaro') has some of Mozart’s most delicious music; there’s no denying that. Where do I start? “Dove sono” for the Countess, “Voi che sapete” for Cherubino, Susanna’s “Deh vieni non tardar” and Figaro’s “Non piu andrai” are only the tip of Mozart’s great iceberg of a score.

PORGY AND BESS, MESSIAH and More Set For Houston Grand Opera 2025-26 Season
by Stephi Wild - Mar 20, 2025

Throughout the 2025-26 season, HGO will be celebrating its beloved artistic and music director, Patrick Summers, who in May 2026 will transition to a new role. Learn more here!

PORGY AND BESS & More Set for Houston Grand Opera 2025-26 Season
by Josh Sharpe - Mar 19, 2025

Houston Grand Opera (HGO) has announced its 2025-26 season, featuring the American opera that launched HGO as a trailblazer, the Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess.

Review: MADAMA BUTTERFLY at Four Seasons Centre For The Performing Arts
by Keira Grant - Feb 5, 2025

The COC’s 2025 production of this masterpiece seamlessly blends performance practice tradition with a contemporary perspective on the story’s timeless themes.

San Diego Symphony Unveils 2025-26 Season at the Transformed Jacobs Music Center
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Jan 31, 2025

The San Diego Symphony has revealed the detailed programs of the 2025-26 Jacobs Music Center season. This will be the second season in the orchestra’s new indoor home. See full programming!

The Metropolitan Opera's Summer HD Festival To Return To Lincoln Center Plaza
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Jun 4, 2024

The Metropolitan Opera’s Summer HD Festival will return to Lincoln Center Plaza this August. See full programming and learn how to attend!

The Met's 2024 Summer Recital Series to Begin in June
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Apr 23, 2024

The Metropolitan Opera’s 2024 Summer Recital Series, now in its 15th season, will begin June 18, with five free outdoor recitals throughout New York City. Learn more about the performances!

GROUNDED by Jeanine Tesori to Open The Metropolitan Opera's 2024�"25 Season
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Feb 21, 2024

The Metropolitan Opera has unveiled the 2024–25 season lineup. Learn about the operas being presented and see how to purchase tickets.

Video: Watch a Preview of MADAME BUTTERFLY at LA Opera, Beginning in September
by Blair Ingenthron - Feb 4, 2024

LA Opera has just announced its 2024/25 season, which includes Madame Butterfly, running September 21st through October 13th. Watch the video preview of the production here!

LA Opera Season to Include ROMEO AND JULIET, Concerts from Kelli O'Hara and Kristin Chenoweth
by Blair Ingenthron - Feb 3, 2024

LA Opera President and CEO Christopher Koelsch has announced details for the company's 39th season. Music Director James Conlon will conduct three of the five mainstage productions, with other mainstage performances led by Resident Conductor Lina González-Granados and by guest conductor Domingo Hindoyan.

Houston Grand Opera to Open Puccini's MADAME BUTTERFLY in January
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Dec 18, 2023

On January 26, 2024, Houston Grand Opera will open Puccini’s Madame Butterfly, with its soaring score and unforgettable tragic story, in a revival of Tony Award-winning director Michael Grandage’s acclaimed production.

The Met & The Apollo to Present Free Simulcast Of X: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MALCOM X Hosted by Angela Bassett
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Nov 7, 2023

The Met Opera and The Apollo will present a free simulcast of Anthony Davis’s X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X at The Apollo on November 18 at 12:55PM. This marks the first-ever collaboration between the two New York cultural institutions.

VIDEO: Watch Footage from X: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MALCOLM X at The Metropolitan Opera
by Blair Ingenthron - Nov 5, 2023

The Metropolitan Opera is currently presenting the company premiere of Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Anthony Davis's groundbreaking opera X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X, opening November 3, the second of six new productions in the 2023–24 season. Check out a new trailer for the production here!

The Metropolitan Opera's 2023�"24 Live in HD Season to Continue With Anthony Davis's X: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MALCOLM X
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Nov 3, 2023

The Metropolitan Opera's 2023–24 Live in HD season will continue with the company premiere of Anthony Davis's X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X.

The Met: Live in HD Brings X: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MALCOM X to the Warner
by Stephi Wild - Nov 2, 2023

The Met: Live in HD, the Metropolitan Opera’s award-winning series of live high-definition cinema simulcasts, presents Anthony Davis's X: The Life and Times of Malcom X, Saturday, November 18 at 12:55 pm ET, in the Warner Theatre's Oneglia Auditorium.