Lawrence Brownlee News

As part of HGOco's cross-cultural East + West initiative, Houston Grand Opera has commissioned two chamber operas to be premiered in spring and summer 2012.

The Metropolitan Opera today announced the names of nine finalists who will sing in the 2012 National Council Auditions Grand Finals Concert on March 18 at 3:00 p.m. with the MET Orchestra conducted by Andrew Davis. The finalists are: Janai Brugger, soprano from Darien, IL;Anthony Clark Evans, baritone from Owensboro, KY; Matthew Grills, tenor from Newton, CT; Will Liverman, baritone from Virginia Beach, VA; Margaret Mezzacappa, mezzo-soprano from Euclid, OH; Andrey Nemzer, countertenor from Moscow, Russia; Kevin Ray, baritone from Cornwall, NY; Lauren Snouffer, soprano from Austin, TX; and Michael Sumuel, bass-baritone from Odessa, TX.

Houston Grand Opera - the only opera company to have won a Tony, two Grammys, and two Emmys - enhances its 2012-13 line-up with three productions from its Song of Houston project, winner of the National MultiCultural Institute's 2009 Leading Lights Diversity Award.

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.

Donizetti's wartime comedy La Fille du Regiment will return to the Met on December 12, with rising stars Nino Machaidze and Lawrence Brownlee in the leading roles of the tomboy Marie and Tonio, the soldier who loves her.

As part of HGOco's cross-cultural East + West initiative, Houston Grand Opera has commissioned two chamber operas to be premiered in spring and summer 2012.

Handel and Haydn Society Presents 158th Annual Handel Messiah, conducted by Artistic Director Harry Christophers.

Donizetti's wartime comedy La Fille du Regiment will return to the Met on December 12, with rising stars Nino Machaidze and Lawrence Brownlee in the leading roles of the tomboy Marie and Tonio, the soldier who loves her.

Handel and Haydn Society Presents 158th Annual Handel Messiah, conducted by Artistic Director Harry Christophers.

When the Houston Grand Opera's 2011-12 season - its 57th - opens officially on October 21 with a new production of Rossini's The Barber of Seville, the company begins a new era under the leadership of Patrick Summers.

Houston Grand Opera crossed the Atlantic to open the season at the illustrious Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris with the first-ever Mariachi opera, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (To Cross the Face of the Moon).

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.

Dozens of opera companies, schools and organizations in 29 states across the nation will celebrate the third NATIONAL OPERA WEEK from October 28 - November 6, 2011 by offering free, accessible events to their communities. National Opera Week is coordinated by OPERA America, the national service organization for opera, with support of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).

Having commissioned the world's first Mariachi opera and premiered the work to great acclaim last season, Houston Grand Opera crosses the Atlantic with its pioneering creation for season-opening performances September 23-27 at the illustrious Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.

Wolf Trap Features the Esteemed Ballet West; the Operatic Superstar Event of the Summer with Opera's Greatest Hits from Wolf Trap Opera's Alumni Stars; Kings of Motown The Temptations and The Four Tops; Folk and Country Stars John Prine and Mary Chapin Carpenter; and GRAMMY Winners Bruce Hornsby & The Noisemakers w/ the Punch Brothers

Wolf Trap Features the Esteemed Ballet West; the Operatic Superstar Event of the Summer with Opera's Greatest Hits from Wolf Trap Opera's Alumni Stars; Kings of Motown The Temptations and The Four Tops; Folk and Country Stars John Prine and Mary Chapin Carpenter; and GRAMMY Winners Bruce Hornsby & The Noisemakers w/ the Punch Brothers

The Metropolitan Opera today announced the names of eight finalists who will sing in the 2011 National Council Auditions Grand Finals Concert on March 13 at 3:00 p.m. with the Met Orchestra conducted by Patrick Summers. The finalists are: Joseph Barron, bass-baritone from Pittsburgh, PA; Deanna Breiwick, soprano from Seattle, WA; Sasha Djihanian, soprano from Montreal, Canada; Ryan Speedo Green, bass-baritone from Suffolk, VA; Michelle Johnson, soprano from Pearland, TX; Joseph Lim, baritone from Seoul, South Korea; Nicholas Masters, bass from New Canaan, CT; and Philippe Sly, bass-baritone from Ottawa, Canada.

The Metropolitan Opera today announced the names of eight finalists who will sing in the 2011 National Council Auditions Grand Finals Concert on March 13 at 3:00 p.m. with the Met Orchestra conducted by Patrick Summers. The finalists are: Joseph Barron, bass-baritone from Pittsburgh, PA; Deanna Breiwick, soprano from Seattle, WA; Sasha Djihanian, soprano from Montreal, Canada; Ryan Speedo Green, bass-baritone from Suffolk, VA; Michelle Johnson, soprano from Pearland, TX; Joseph Lim, baritone from Seoul, South Korea; Nicholas Masters, bass from New Canaan, CT; and Philippe Sly, bass-baritone from Ottawa, Canada.

Renee Fleming will reprise her tour-de-force portrayal of the title character in Rossini's virtuosic rarity Armida for a run of performances beginning February 18.

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.