Vincenzo Costanzo

San Francisco Opera announces the winner of the 2017 Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Emerging Stars Competition. Tenor Arturo Chacon-Cruz, who appeared as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Boheme this summer, was named "2017 Emerging Star of the Year" based on a popular vote conducted online at sfopera.com from July 5-August 15, 2017. Now in its second year, the competition featured rising stars appearing in San Francisco Opera's 2016-17 Season at the War Memorial Opera House.

The 2017 national radio broadcast series of San Francisco Opera performances on the WFMT Radio Network begins on Saturday, September 2 with a 1979 archival broadcast of Amilcare Ponchielli's La Gioconda. The cast features soprano Renata Scotto in the title role and tenor Luciano Pavarotti as Enzo Grimaldi, each singing their role for the first time on any stage.

San Francisco Opera's 2016–17 Season continues with ten performances of Giacomo Puccini's heartbreaking drama Madama Butterfly, November 6 through December 4 at the War Memorial Opera House. The cast will feature the much-anticipated American debut of young Italian tenor Vincenzo Costanzo as Lt. B.F. Pinkerton and return of Armenian soprano Lianna Haroutounian as the tragic heroine, Cio-Cio-San. Jun Kaneko's colorful and compelling production, last seen in San Francisco during the 2013–14 Season, will be directed by Leslie Swackhamer and Maestro Yves Abel conducts the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus.

San Francisco Opera's 2016-17 Season continues with ten performances of Giacomo Puccini's heartbreaking drama Madama Butterfly, November 6 through December 4 at the War Memorial Opera House. The cast will feature the much-anticipated American debut of young Italian tenor Vincenzo Costanzo as Lt. B.F. Pinkerton and return of Armenian soprano Lianna Haroutounian as the tragic heroine, Cio-Cio-San. Jun Kaneko's colorful and compelling production, last seen in San Francisco during the 2013-14 Season, will be directed by Leslie Swackhamer and Maestro Yves Abel conducts the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus.

San Francisco Opera today announced cast updates for the upcoming productions of Leoš Jana?ek's The Makropulos Case and Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly. The role of Albert Gregor in The Makropulos Case will now feature American tenor Charles Workman in his Company debut, replacing Scott Quinn who has withdrawn due to personal reasons. Italian tenor Vincenzo Costanzo will make his United States opera debut as Lt. B. F. Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly in lieu of Maxim Aksenov who has withdrawn for personal reasons.