Houston Grand Opera News

Celebrate the New Year with the Hawai'i Symphony Orchestra (HSO) and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony - a joyful celebration of music, community and hope - on Thursday, December 29 at 7:30 p.m. and Friday, December 30 at 7:30 p.m. Maestro JoAnn Falletta leads the HSO, performing with the O?ahu Choral Society and Artistic Director Dr. Esther S. Yoo, and nationally noted guest soloists Rachel Schutz, soprano; Charlene Chi, mezzo-soprano; Kip Wilborn, tenor; and Jeremy M. Wong, baritone. Considered by many to be the greatest piece of music ever written, Beethoven's final symphony has become a universal anthem of humankind, with a message of optimism and faith at the dawn of the New Year. Its majestic closing movement featuring Friedrich Schiller's poem "An die Freude" ("Ode to Joy"), with additions made by the composer himself, is a breathtaking experience. 

ontinuing a tradition inaugurated in 2006, the Met offers a holiday presentation sung in English for families this December and January. This year's production, Mozart's The Magic Flute, opens December 20 and includes reduced ticket prices.

Mirror Visions Ensemble (MVE) celebrates its 25th anniversary on Monday, January 16 at 8:00 p.m. at the Loreto Theater at the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture with a concert entitled Reflections and Projections: 25 Years of Mirror Visions.

Sony Classical proudly announces the release of the Mozart in the Jungle Season 3 Soundtrack, available digitally and on CD on December 9, 2016.

Lynne Meadow (Artistic Director) and Barry Grove (Executive Producer) have just announced that Manhattan Theatre Club, by special arrangement with Gorgeous Entertainment, will produce the Broadway premiere of Prince of Broadway, a musical celebration that highlights the extraordinary six-decade career of director and producer Harold Prince. Prince of Broadway will start previews Thursday, August 3, 2017 for a Thursday, August 24, 2017 opening night at MTC's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre (261 West 47th Street).

Houston Grand Opera (HGO) continues its cycle of holiday operas with the world premiere presentation of It's a Wonderful Life by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, now through December 17. This timeless tale follows a troubled banker whose guardian angel teaches him the lesson of realizing the lasting impact our lives can have on those around us. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

For one night only, singer/songwriter Jeremy Schonfeld's Iron & Coal will make its U.S. debut at Brooklyn's National Sawdust. The original concept album will be presented in concert with vibrant multimedia content today, December 6, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. at National Sawdust (80 North 6th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11249).

MasterVoices (formerly The Collegiate Chorale), celebrating its 75th anniversary during the 2016-2017 season, presents St. John Passion by Johann Sebastian Bach on February 9, 2017 at 7pm at Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall (57th Street and 7th Avenue, New York, NY 10019).

Houston Grand Opera continues its cycle of holiday operas with the world premiere of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. The timeless tale follows a troubled banker whose guardian angel shows him the lasting impact our lives can have on those around us.

Broadway Across Canada announced today that individual tickets for the Winnipeg premiere of Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage will go on sale Monday December 12 at 10am.

Houston Grand Opera continues its cycle of holiday operas with the world premiere of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. The timeless tale follows a troubled banker whose guardian angel shows him the lasting impact our lives can have on those around us.

The Robert E. and Jean Ann Titus Art Song Recital Series will feature the magnetic tenor, Michael Fabiano, in an exclusive recital produced by The Dallas Opera. The performance will take place on Sunday, January 22, 2017 at 2:00 p.m. in Dallas City Performance Hall (a 749-seat venue located at 2520 Flora Street-across the street from the Winspear Opera House-in the Arts District, Dallas, TX 75201).

San Francisco Opera will present the West Coast premiere of It's a Wonderful Life, a new opera by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, during the 2018-19 Season at the War Memorial Opera House. An opera in two acts, It's a Wonderful Life is a co-commission and co-production with Houston Grand Opera and Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music and is based on Frank Capra's beloved 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life, by permission of Paramount Licensing, Inc., and "The Greatest Gift," a short story by Philip Van Doren Stern.

San Francisco Opera will present the West Coast premiere of It's a Wonderful Life, a new opera by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, during the 2018-19 Season at the War Memorial Opera House. An opera in two acts, It's a Wonderful Life is a co-commission and co-production with Houston Grand Opera and Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music and is based on Frank Capra's beloved 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life, by permission of Paramount Licensing, Inc., and 'The Greatest Gift,' a short story by Philip Van Doren Stern.

For one night only, singer/songwriter Jeremy Schonfeld's Iron & Coal will make its U.S. debut at Brooklyn's National Sawdust. The original concept album will be presented in concert with vibrant multimedia content on Tuesday, December 6, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. at National Sawdust (80 North 6th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11249).

One of the truly legendary musicals in the history of Broadway, Merrily We Roll Along opened to enormous fanfare in 1981, and closed after sixteen performances. For the first time, Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened  draws back the curtain on the extraordinary drama of the show's creation - and tells the stories of the hopeful young performers whose lives were transformed by it. Directed by Lonny Price, a member of the original cast, the film is a bittersweet meditation on the choices we all make, and the often unexpected consequences of those choices -- through success and failure. Featuring exclusive appearances by Stephen Sondheim, Hal Prince, Jason Alexander, Mandy Patinkin, Adam Guettel, Frank Rich and the original Broadway cast of Merrily We Roll Along.  Below, Richard Ridge chats with Price about his journey with the musical, the creation of the documentary, and so much more!

Alfie Boe and Katherine Jenkins will star for the first time together in the West End as Billy Bigelow and Julie Jordan in Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel.

Houston Ballet and Houston Grand Opera (HGO) are joining forces this holiday season to get books into the hands of Houston children who need them most.

Professional rigger Rocky Paulson, lighting designer Fred Foster, costume designer Liz Covey, sound designer Rick Thomas, scenic designer Santo Loquasto, production stage manager Joseph Drummond, and educator John Conklin will be honored with USITT Distinguished Achievement Awards at USITT's 2017 Annual Conference & Stage Expo in St. Louis March 8-11.

Casting has been announced for Cameron Mackintosh's spectacular new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA for the triumphant return Atlanta engagement at the Fox Theatre February 22 - March 5 as a Fifth Third Bank Broadway in Atlanta 2016/2017 season special.