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Lyric Unlimited Presents MEMORY AND RECKONING, 2/24-3/15

Anthony Freud, general director of Lyric Opera of Chicago, today announced Memory and Reckoning, a confluence of activities related to the Chicago premiere of Mieczysaw Weinberg's The Passenger, on stage at Lyric February 24 through March 15. This poignant and gripping 20th-century masterpiece portrays the story of the Holocaust from the perspectives of both victim and perpetrator, and was only recently rediscovered after more than 40 years of suppression.

The Houston Grand Opera Closes Its 2013-2014 Season with THE PASSENGER

Houston Grand Opera capped a financially and artistically successful 2013–14 season by presenting Mieczyslaw Weinberg's The Passenger —the Polish-Jewish composer's long-suppressed Holocaust opera—to wide acclaim at New York's Park Avenue Armory as part of the Lincoln Center Festival, July 10–13. Earlier this year, HGO gave the American premiere of the work in Houston with the same cast. There was special praise for the production and performances, conducted by HGO Artistic and Music Director Patrick Summers. New York magazine described David Pountney's staging as “a multi-story set so vivid you can practically smell the machine oil and coal smoke,” while the Financial Times said: “The production, imported from Houston, is imposing in every way.” The New York Times called the cast “flawless,” adding: “The conductor, Patrick Summers, drew a surging, textured, richly detailed performance of this challenging score (lasting three hours) from the inspired musicians of the Houston Grand Opera.” WQXR's Operavore summed up the import of the performances: “The Passenger shows how a Holocaust opera can hold the stage while examining important, complex issues—and could certainly point the way for future composers to deal with such important but delicate subject matter.”

Houston Grand Opera Presents the New York Premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's THE PASSENGER, Now thru 7/13

Houston Grand Opera's U.S. premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's The Passenger- the long-suppressed Holocaust opera that Shostakovich declared 'a perfect masterpiece'- earned virtually universal acclaim earlier this year. The Chicago Tribune declared The Passenger to be an 'engrossing, thought-provoking experience,' while the Houston Chronicle praised the presentation for 'ingenious storytelling, potent music, commanding performances and vivid, fast-paced staging.' Now HGO brings the David Pountney production of The Passenger for its New York premiere in three performances- today, July 10, 12, 13 -at the Park Avenue Armory as part of the 2014 Lincoln Center Festival.

The Houston Grand Opera Presents the New York Premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's THE PASSENGER, 7/10-13

Houston Grand Opera's U.S. premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's The Passenger— the long-suppressed Holocaust opera that Shostakovich declared “a perfect masterpiece”— earned virtually universal acclaim earlier this year. The Chicago Tribune declared The Passenger to be an “engrossing, thought-provoking experience,” while the Houston Chronicle praised the presentation for “ingenious storytelling, potent music, commanding performances and vivid, fast-paced staging.” Now HGO brings the David Pountney production of The Passenger for its New York premiere in three performances— July 10, 12, 13 —at the Park Avenue Armory as part of the 2014 Lincoln Center Festival. Pountney's staging was inspired, in part, by the soaring space of Park Avenue Armory's massive Wade Thompson Drill Hall, where he produced Zimmerman'sDie Soldaten for Lincoln Center Festival in 2008. HGO artistic and music director Patrick Summers will conduct the HGO Orchestra and Chorus; reviewing the Houston performances, the Wall Street Journal praised Summers for the way he “shaped the evening with enormous care.” The Dallas Morning News commended all the singers – headed by mezzo-soprano Michelle Breedt in the title role – by saying: “Top to bottom, the cast is excellent.”

Lyric Unlimited to Present New Commissions & Family Presentation in 2015

Anthony Freud, general director of Lyric Opera of Chicago, today announced details around three new commissions and a brand-new family presentation in 2015: The Property, a klezmer opera by composer Wlad Marhulets and librettist Stephanie Fleischmann; Second Nature, a children's opera from composer Matthew Aucoin; El Pasado Nunca Se Termina, a mariachi opera by composer Jose 'Pepe' Martinez and librettist Leonard Foglia; and The Magic Victrola, a new family presentation.

Gordon Getty's USHER HOUSE to Premiere at Welsh National Opera, 13-15 June

Composer Gordon Getty's opera Usher House will receive its world stage premiere as part of Welsh National Opera's double bill titled The Fall of the House of Usher on Friday, June 13, and Sunday, June 15, 2014, in Cardiff, Wales, and Friday, June 20, 2014 in Birmingham. The Getty opera will be paired with Robert Orledge's completed version of Debussy's La Chute de la Maison Usher. A co-production with San Francisco Opera, the double bill will receive its United States premiere in San Francisco in December 2015.

2014 Lincoln Center Festival to Kick Off 7/7; Single Tickets On Sale 3/31

Single tickets will go on sale on March 31 for ALL Lincoln Center Festival presentations. The festival, which runs from July 7 through August 16, 2014, with performances by artists and ensembles from 11 countries, and a co-presentation with Park Avenue Armory, will take place in six venues on and off the Lincoln Center campus.

Errollyn Wallen to Play Symphony Space, 2/21

Belize-born and London-based composer, singer-songwriter, and pianist Errollyn Wallen takes the stage at Symphony Space on Friday, February 21 (7:30 pm) for an evening of her genre-defying music. The program includes two world premieres and five US premieres, heard in performances by Wallen, the Hartt Quartet, the Miller-Porfiris Duo, baritone Fredrick Redd, and writer David Grand. The concert takes place at the Leonard Nimoy Thalia as part of The Music of Now Series, which runs through the end of March. Tickets are $32, $27 for members, and $20 for those under 30, available at www.symphonyspace.org.

BWW Reviews: Houston Grand Opera's US Premiere of THE PASSENGER is Brilliant

Houston Grand Opera is kicking off 2014 with the most harrowing and exhausting evening of opera I have ever experienced, and as an audience member I couldn't be more thrilled. If you're simply looking for entertainment, you'll be better off seeing RIGOLETTO (the other opera being performed in repertory with THE PASSENGER this January at Houston Grand Opera). However, if you're searching for a cerebral, gripping, and altogether emotional experience, then Houston Grand Opera's (HGO) US Premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg and Alexander Medvedev's THE PASSENGER delivers everything you're wanting and so much more.

Cate Blanchett-Led THE MAIDS and More Set for 2014 Lincoln Center Festival

Nigel Redden, director of Lincoln Center Festival today announced the 2014 Festival's line-up, which runs from July 7 through August 16, 2014, with performances by artists and ensembles from 11 countries unfolding in six venues on and off the Lincoln Center campus. These productions join the previously-announced Lincoln Center Festival and Park Avenue Armory co-presentation of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's opera, The Passenger, performed by Houston Grand Opera, directed by David Pountney, and conducted by Patrick Summers.

Houston Grand Opera to Launch 2014 With Three World Premieres, American Premiere and More

The opening months of 2014 bring into focus the strengths of Houston Grand Opera (HGO), which launches the new year with an extraordinary line-up. This comprises the world premieres of three important new commissions -Ricky Ian Gordon's A Coffin in Egypt, named one of the twelve "must-see opera events of the season" (Opera News), and two works exploring Houston's Vietnamese and Indian communities, courtesy of HGO's award-winning Song of Houston project; the hotly anticipated American premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's long-suppressed Holocaust opera, The Passenger, in the production that took Europe by storm; the first American presentation of a visionary and groundbreaking treatment of Das Rheingold by Catalan's La Fura dels Baus; a new HGO production of Carmen from Broadway sensation Rob Ashford; a revival of Rigoletto; and a restaged production of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music, which boasts designs by fashion icon Isaac Mizrahi. As the Houston Press recently noted, "Artistic and Music Director Patrick Summers is thinking bigger than ever."

Houston Grand Opera Launches The New Year With a Lineup That Includes A COFFIN IN EGYPT, and More

Houston, December 17, 2013 ­– The opening months of 2014 bring into focus the strengths of Houston Grand Opera (HGO), which launches the new year with an extraordinary line-up. This comprises the world premieres of three important new commissions —Ricky Ian Gordon's A Coffin in Egypt, named one of the twelve “must-see opera events of the season” (Opera News), and two works exploring Houston's Vietnamese and Indian communities, courtesy of HGO's award-winning Song of Houston project; the hotly anticipated American premiere of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's long-suppressed Holocaust opera, The Passenger, in the production that took Europe by storm; the first American presentation of a visionary and groundbreaking treatment of Das Rheingold by Catalan's La Fura dels Baus; a new HGO production of Carmen from Broadway sensation Rob Ashford; a revival of Rigoletto; and a restaged production of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music, which boasts designs by fashion icon Isaac Mizrahi. As the Houston Press recently noted, “Artistic and Music Director Patrick Summers is thinking bigger than ever.”

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