Karita Mattila News

The Metropolitan Opera announced plans for a series of free outdoor events this summer: operatic recitals that will take place in parks throughout the city and encore screenings of the Met's popular HD shows in Lincoln Center Plaza.

The Metropolitan Opera announced plans for a series of free outdoor events this summer: operatic recitals that will take place in parks throughout the city and encore screenings of the Met's popular HD shows in Lincoln Center Plaza.

The Met Opera's Free Summer HD Festival lights up the newly redesigned Lincoln Center Plaza, Saturday, August 28 - Monday, September 6, 2010.

The Met Opera's Free Summer HD Festival lights up the newly redesigned Lincoln Center Plaza, Saturday, August 28 - Monday, September 6, 2010.

The Metropolitan Opera announced plans for a series of free outdoor events this summer: operatic recitals that will take place in parks throughout the city and encore screenings of the Met's popular HD shows in Lincoln Center Plaza.

The Metropolitan Opera announced plans for a series of free outdoor events this summer: operatic recitals that will take place in parks throughout the city and encore screenings of the Met's popular HD shows in Lincoln Center Plaza.

London's Wigmore Hall celebrates its 110th Anniversary during the 2010-2011 Season. For one hundred ten years, the Hall has served the global musical community, of extending a 550-seat venue's reach across oceans and continents, launching careers of the next generation of musicians, presenting a familiar and beloved stage for familiar and beloved artists, and offering repertory not often heard on other stages.

The Metropolitan Opera announced plans for a series of free outdoor events this summer: operatic recitals that will take place in parks throughout the city and encore screenings of the Met's popular HD shows in Lincoln Center Plaza.

Alban Berg's modernist masterpiece Lulu returns to the Met, starring Marlis Petersen as the scandalous femme fatale and conducted by the Met's newly appointed Principal Guest Conductor Fabio Luisi.

Alban Berg's modernist masterpiece Lulu returns to the Met, starring Marlis Petersen as the scandalous femme fatale and conducted by the Met's newly appointed Principal Guest Conductor Fabio Luisi.

Strauss's comic masterpiece of love and intrigue in 18th-century Vienna stars Renée Fleming as the aristocratic Marschallin and Susan Graham in the trouser role of her young lover Octavian. Edo De Waart conducts a cast that includes Christine Schäfer as Sophie, Eric Cutler as the Italian singer, Thomas Allen as Faninal, and Kristinn Sigmundsson as Baron Ochs.

Verdi's La Traviata returns to the Met with Angela Gheorghiu reprising her acclaimed interpretation of Violetta, a role the New York Times called a 'supercharged star turn' when she performed it in 2006.

On Thursday, April 22 at 8:00 p.m., acclaimed mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade, with pianist Martin Katz, sings her New York farewell concert in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage. Her varied program includes works by some of the greatest contemporary and 20th century American composers: Ned Rorem, Jake Heggie, Virgil Thomson, Aaron Copland, Lee Hoiby, Leonard Bernstein, Carol Hall, William Bolcom, and Stephen Sondheim.

Patricia Racette will sing the title role in Puccini's Tosca on April 14, 17, 20, and 24 matinee, replacing Karita Mattila, who is ill. These will be Racette's first performances of Tosca at the Met, although she had already been invited to sing the role at the Met in a future season.

Patricia Racette will sing the title role in Puccini's Tosca on April 14, 17, 20, and 24 matinee, replacing Karita Mattila, who is ill. These will be Racette's first performances of Tosca at the Met, although she had already been invited to sing the role at the Met in a future season.

Rossini's rarely performed Armida has its Met premiere on April 12 with a gala performance of Mary Zimmerman's new production. Renowned soprano Renée Fleming stars as the mythological sorceress, Armida, one of the greatest virtuoso roles from the bel canto repertory. Fleming is joined by Lawrence Brownlee, who sings Armida's chief love interest, Rinaldo, and five more tenors in the roles of the crusader knights. José Manuel Zapata portrays Rinaldo's deadly rival Gernando.

Ambroise Thomas's Hamlet returns to the Met stage for its first performances since 1897, with the powerful pairing of Simon Keenlyside in the title role and Marlis Petersen as Ophélie. Keenlyside's acclaimed interpretation of Hamlet in Geneva, London and Barcelona finally arrives in the United States, with a performance in the Patrice Caurier and Moshe Leiser production that was hailed by the British press as 'magnificent . . . sheer vocal genius.' Petersen, who steps in for Natalie Dessay, brings her haunting portrayal of Ophélie to the Met; she earned praise for the role during a 2006 run of Hamlet in Düsseldorf. Louis Langrée conducts a cast that includes Jennifer Larmore as Gertrude, Toby Spence in his Met debut as Laërte, and James Morris in the role of Claudius. Jane Archibald, in her Met debut, sings the role of Ophélie on April 5 and 9. The creative team is rounded out by Christian Fenouillat with set designs, Agostino Cavalca with costume designs, and Christophe Forey with lighting designs, all in their Met debuts. Performances run through April 9, with the March 27 matinee shown worldwide as part of The Met: Live in HD

Rossini's rarely performed Armida has its Met premiere on April 12 with a gala performance of Mary Zimmerman's new production. Renowned soprano Renée Fleming stars as the mythological sorceress, Armida, one of the greatest virtuoso roles from the bel canto repertory. Fleming is joined by Lawrence Brownlee, who sings Armida's chief love interest, Rinaldo, and five more tenors in the roles of the crusader knights. José Manuel Zapata portrays Rinaldo's deadly rival Gernando.

James Levine has withdrawn from the four performances of Tosca and three performances of Lulu he was scheduled to conduct in April and May. He is to undergo corrective surgery for an ongoing lower back problem. Fabio Luisi will replace Levine for both Tosca (April 14, 17, 20, and 24 mat.) and Lulu (May 8, 12, 15 mat.).

Patricia Racette will sing the title role in Puccini's Tosca on April 14, 17, 20, and 24 matinee, replacing Karita Mattila, who is ill. These will be Racette's first performances of Tosca at the Met, although she had already been invited to sing the role at the Met in a future season.