Anthony Tommasini News

The role of the fragile title heroine who teeters between love and madness is shared by sopranos Olga Peretyatko-Mariotti and Pretty Yende, who have each impressed audiences with dazzling bel canto portrayals at the Met. Vittorio Grigolo and Michael Fabiano share the role of her lover in this chilling production by Tony Award-winning director Mary Zimmerman. Roberto Abbado conducts.

Opera Grand Rapids will present a classically-staged production of "The Marriage of Figaro," May 4 and 5, 2018 at DeVos Performance Hall.

A new production of Cosi Fan Tutte, featuring Broadway's Kelli O'Hara is now open at The Metropolitan Opera! What did the critics have to say? A winning cast comes together for Phelim McDermott's clever vision of Mozart's comedy about the sexes, set in a carnival-esque, funhouse environment inspired by 1950s Coney Island-complete with bearded ladies, fire eaters, and a Ferris wheel. Manipulating the action are the Don Alfonso of Christopher Maltman and the Despina of Tony Award-winner Kelli O'Hara, with Amanda Majeski, Serena Malfi, Ben Bliss, and Adam Plachetka as the pairs of young lovers who test each other's faithfulness. David Robertson conducts.

The Princeton Symphony Orchestra (PSO) announces its 2018-2019 season, featuring more concerts than ever before including a six-concert subscription series with new Saturday evening performance options and music ranging from classical Beethoven and Brahms concertos to a celebration of Leonard Bernstein favorites, works by Paganini, Jana?ek, and Stravinsky, and a Dvo?ak symphony. There is a recent piece by Missy Mazzoli and a new work by Derek Bermel, co-commissioned by the PSO. Superstar violinist Rachel Barton Pine, pianists Inon Barnatan and Dominic Cheli, soprano Meghan Picerno, and guest conductor Marcelo Lehninger grace the PSO stage. Audience favorites Daniel Rowland and flutist Chelsea Knox make highly anticipated return appearances, and an afternoon of music by Falla is accompanied by flamenco dancing. Presiding over all is conductor and Music Director Rossen Milanov, whose 10-year anniversary celebration with the PSO gets underway in early 2019.

Academy Award-nominee, Angela Bassett will join Kathleen Battle as a guest narrator in Battle's program Underground Railroad: A Spiritual Journey accompanied by pianist Joel Martin and the LA-based choir, The Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers at the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya) on Thursday, March 29 at 8:00pm.

Christine Goerke sings her first Elektra at the Met in Patrice Chéreau's landmark production, a sensation at its Met premiere last spring, which the Wall Street Journal called “revolutionary … a triumph on all fronts.” Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Strauss's shattering score, a tour de force for the singers and the orchestra alike.

American soprano Kathleen Battle's luminous voice has been called by The Washington Post "...without qualification, one of the very few most beautiful in the world."  Yet beyond the glory of her singing, in a career filled with countless accolades, honors and major milestones, what has perhaps distinguished her most is her almost magical ability to create an unwavering emotional bond between herself, her music and her audience.  On Thursday, March 29 at 8pm, that special bond will be on full display when Ms. Battle makes her debut at The Soraya with Kathleen Battle: Underground Railroad-A Spiritual Journey accompanied by pianist Joel Martin and the LA-based choir, The Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers.

Travel back to ancient Babylon when Assur, a prince descend­ed from Baal, brings offerings to the temple in hopes that Queen Semiramide will choose him as successor to her late husband. But, with a flash of lightning, the sacred altar flame goes out…

Laurie Rubin, a blind singer who challenged the norm and beat the odds is performing at The Berman Center for the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, February 22.

Arizona Opera's CANDIDE is a work of mastery, a fitting tribute to Leonard Bernstein. Bravura performances by Miles Mykkanen, Curt Olds, and Katrina Galka. Jerome Sirlin's innovative digital projections. The seamless fusion of artistic and technical elements. All together have raised the bar for any future production of this classic.

Emmanuel Villaume conducts the Met's new production of Puccini's Tosca, on December 31, 2017, and January 3, 6, 9, 12, 23, and 27, 2018, replacing James Levine.

Chicago Opera Theater (COT) presents 'Elizabeth Cree,' a suspenseful and thrilling tale set in Victorian London, based on the novel 'The Trial of Elizabeth Cree' by Peter Ackroyd.

The New Amsterdam Singers (NAS) celebrating 50 years of leadership under Music Director Clara Longstreth, launches its 2017-18 season with a program titled Sing, Sing Ye Muses, featuring a world premiere-NAS commission by Carol Barnett.

The New Amsterdam Singers will celebrate 50 years of leadership under its Music Director Clara Longstreth in the 2017 18 season, with three sets of concerts and three world-premiere commissioned works.

Daniil Trifonov's performance with the Mariinsky Orchestra was part of his Perspectives concert series, which continues on February 6. Let's see what the critics had to say!

The Open Source Music Festival, November 16-18, 2017 at the Abrons Arts Center, takes its inspiration from the collaborations and connections between artists. The groundbreaking event explores the phenomenon of Open Source through a musical lens.

DIE WALK RE runs through November 30 at Lyric Opera of Chicago, and the critics are weighing in!

Bernstein's Philharmonic: A Centennial Festival will be performed again on Tuesday, November 14. Let's see what the critics had to say!

The American Composers Orchestra held their 40th Birthday Concert on November 7 at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Frederick P Rose Hall. Let's see what the critics had to say!

The New Amsterdam Singers (NAS) celebrating 50 years of leadership under Music Director Clara Longstreth, launches its 2017-18 season with a program titled Sing, Sing Ye Muses, featuring a world premiere-NAS commission by Carol Barnett.