Polka dots, neon and pastel colors, and innovative use of projector technology comprise a cheerful and vivid new production of Mozart's The Magic Flute, which premiered Wednesday night at the San Francisco Opera Memorial House. Although it sometimes lacks the dramatics needed to keep a strong momentum, the production makes a strong addition to a long line of creative takes on the opera. Plus, its nonsensical plot makes it the perfect opera to share with friends who do not regularly attend opera. San Francisco Opera General Director David Gockley's new modern English translation also adds to that note, although some audiences may miss the original German.
Houston Grand Opera, with Music Director Patrick Summers and Managing Director Perryn Leech, announces its 2012-13 season, headlined by four new productions. The first of these is Puccini's La boheme, which launches the new season with a new staging by award-winning British director John Caird. To honor 2013's joint bicentennials of Wagner and Verdi, the coming season juxtaposes Tristan und Isolde - starring Ben Heppner and Nina Stemme in a new contemporary staging by Christof Loy - with a revival of Steven Lawless's unforgettable take on Il trovatore. British conductor Trevor Pinnock leads a strong international cast in Mozart's ensemble masterpiece Don Giovanni, while Francesca Zambello's new production of Kern and Hammerstein's Show Boat brings together stars of Broadway and the opera house in a celebration of America's own contribution to the art. For a more intimate experience, Daniela Barcellona and Lawrence Brownlee star in Rossini's dramma giocoso, The Italian Girl in Algiers.
Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel, sung in English, will return to the Met December 16 as the company's annual holiday presentation. Performances of the opera this season will include weekday matinees and special ticket prices designed to appeal to families with children. The fairy tale adaptation, which will be seen in Richard Jones's fanciful production, will star Aleksandra Kurzak in her Met role debut as Gretel, opposite Alice Coote and Kate Lindsey (also making her Met role debut), who alternate in the role of Hansel. Michaela Martens and Dwayne Croft will sing the roles of the adventurous children's parents, Gertrude and Peter, while Robert Brubaker will sing the Witch who wants to turn them into gingerbread cookies. Jennifer Johnson Cano will sing the Sandman, who coaxes the children to sleep, and Lindemann Young Artist Development Program member Lei Xu the Dew Fairy, who awakens them. The rising British conductor Robin Ticciati, currently music director of the Glyndebourne Festival, will make his Met debut.
Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel, sung in English, will return to the Met December 16 as the company's annual holiday presentation. Performances of the opera this season will include weekday matinees and special ticket prices designed to appeal to families with children. The fairy tale adaptation, which will be seen in Richard Jones's fanciful production, will star Aleksandra Kurzak in her Met role debut as Gretel, opposite Alice Coote and Kate Lindsey (also making her Met role debut), who alternate in the role of Hansel. Michaela Martens and Dwayne Croft will sing the roles of the adventurous children's parents, Gertrude and Peter, while Robert Brubaker will sing the Witch who wants to turn them into gingerbread cookies. Jennifer Johnson Cano will sing the Sandman, who coaxes the children to sleep, and Lindemann Young Artist Development Program member Lei Xu the Dew Fairy, who awakens them. The rising British conductor Robin Ticciati, currently music director of the Glyndebourne Festival, will make his Met debut.
Baroque opera productions can go wrong in so many ways. With their recitatives, lone arias and what some call 'repetitious' or 'continuous' sound, boredom can easily spell failure. The key, then, to an entertaining, attention-grabbing Baroque opera lies with the staging - the proper use of the stage, interaction of characters and energetic acting. With its intriguing sets and singers that glide over their often improvised coloratura notes, San Francisco Opera's production of Handel's 'Xerxes' knows how to make Baroque opera interesting.
The Metropolitan Opera announces the return of Engelbert Humperdinck's, Hansel and Gretel, with eight performances during the holiday season. Aleksandra Kurzak and Heidi Stober alternate as Gretel and Kate Lindsey and Alice Coote alternate as Hansel in Richard Jones's spectacular production, which runs from December 16 to January 7 with special weekday matinee performances at family-friendly prices. Conductor Robin Ticciati makes his Metropolitan Opera debut with this production.
The Metropolitan Opera's 2011-12 season will feature the world's leading singers, conductors, and stage directors in seven new productions, including a world premiere, a Met premiere, and the first complete performances of a new Der Ring des Nibelungen cycle conducted by Music Director James Levine and directed by Robert Lepage.
Bramwell Tovey brings the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Tuesday Classical series to a conclusion, marking the 10th anniversary of 9/11 with Mozart's choral masterpiece, his Requiem, Tuesday, September 13, at 8 pm.
Bramwell Tovey brings the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Tuesday Classical series to a conclusion, marking the 10th anniversary of 9/11 with Mozart's choral masterpiece, his Requiem, Tuesday, September 13, at 8 pm.
The Metropolitan Opera's 2011-12 season will feature the world's leading singers, conductors, and stage directors in seven new productions, including a world premiere, a Met premiere, and the first complete performances of a new Der Ring des Nibelungen cycle conducted by Music Director James Levine and directed by Robert Lepage.
So far this season, Susan Graham has triumphed in Berlioz's Damnation de Faust at Lyric Opera of Chicago, in Strauss's Rosenkavalier at New York's Metropolitan Opera, in Mahler's Rückert-Lieder with the San Francisco Symphony, and in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas on a West Coast tour.
So far this season, Susan Graham has triumphed in Berlioz's Damnation de Faust at Lyric Opera of Chicago, in Strauss's Rosenkavalier at New York's Metropolitan Opera, in Mahler's Rückert-Lieder with the San Francisco Symphony, and in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas on a West Coast tour.
So far this season, Susan Graham has triumphed in Berlioz's Damnation de Faust at Lyric Opera of Chicago, in Strauss's Rosenkavalier at New York's Metropolitan Opera, in Mahler's Rückert-Lieder with the San Francisco Symphony, and in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas on a West Coast tour.
Houston Grand Opera closes its 2009-2010 season with Nicholas Hytner's laurence Olivier Award-wining production of Handel's XERXES. XERXES opens on Friday April 30 with performances through May 14.
Henry Purcell's King Arthur, with libretto by John Dryden, premieres on Wednesday, March 5 at 7PM, opening the company's spring season with a gala to follow.
