Fort Worth Opera (FWO) proudly announced today the news that legendary Mexican ensemble Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlan will be prominently featured in the company's 2019 production of El Pasado Nunca se Termina (The Past is Never Finished). Called "The Best Mariachi in Jalisco," this phenomenal group from Guadalajara, Mexico, was founded in 1965 by Jose 'Pepe' Martinez, the late director of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan, and his brother Fernando Martinez.
San Francisco Opera announces updated casting for its 96th Season, which opens Friday, September 7, with the double bill of Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and Ruggero Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, and two galas, Opera Ball 2018: ¡Viva La Noche! and the BRAVO! CLUB Opening Night Gala. The 2018-19 Season features eight productions that are new to the War Memorial Opera House stage, including a new staging of Giacomo Puccini's Tosca and the West Coast premiere of Jake Heggie's It's a Wonderful Life. Highlights also include Placido Domingo in Concert on October 21 and a roster of returning artists, debuting soloists and conductors.
Fort Worth Opera (FWOpera) announced today the casts and creative teams for the 2019 Festival season, including the world premiere of composer-librettist Rachel J. Peters's delightfully wicked opera, Companionship. Adapted from the short story by internationally bestselling author Arthur Phillips, this delicious dark comedy about an obsession with dough, mirrors our modern world, where what we consume becomes all-consuming. Selected as a winner of the 2018 FWOpera Frontiers showcase, the work will receive a fully staged production next spring at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, as part of FWOpera's alternative venue series, Opera Unbound.
The New York City Opera has announced two new productions which will premiere during its 75th Anniversary season at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Rose Theater.
Schimmel Center will present Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee Anna Deavere Smith's Obie Award-winning solo performance, Notes From the Field, for one weekend only on Friday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. and Today, June 2 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. in preparation for a two week run at the Royal Court in London. The production is directed by Leonard Foglia and features original music composed and performed by bassist Marcus Shelby who joins Ms. Smith on stage.
Houston Grand Opera (HGO) announced at its annual meeting today that its 2017-18 season, dramatically relocated after Hurricane Harvey, closed on a strong financial footing despite nearly $15 million of losses due to the storm and related costs. Lower sales income than in previous seasons was significantly offset by a Harvey recovery fundraising campaign that has raised more than $9.5 million to date. HGO presented its entire 63rd season in the HGO Resilience Theater, a temporary venue the company built in Houston's George R. Brown Convention Center after its home in the Wortham Theater Center was seriously damaged by flooding. The company will return to the Wortham in the fall with a gala benefit concert featuring Placido Domingo and Ana Maria Martinez on September 26.
Theatre for a New Audience (TFANA; Jeffrey Horowitz, Founding Artistic Director), an award-winning company presenting Shakespeare alongside other classic and contemporary drama at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, Downtown Brooklyn, is pleased to announce its 2018-19 season-the 39th since its founding in 1979.
Schimmel Center will present Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee Anna Deavere Smith's Obie Award-winning solo performance, Notes From the Field, for one weekend only on Friday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, June 2 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. in preparation for a two week run at the Royal Court in London. The production is directed by Leonard Foglia and features original music composed and performed by bassist Marcus Shelby who joins Ms. Smith on stage.
At a time when our nation is wrestling with tough questions about immigration, Houston Grand Opera is bringing back its bilingual production of Cruzar la Cara de la Luna / To Cross the Face of the Moon, a moving story that chronicles the joys and struggles of three generations of a family divided between countries and cultures through the rich melodies of mariachi. HGO presents three special performances on May 17, 19, and 20 in the HGO Resilience Theater at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Composed by Jose 'Pepe' Martinez with libretto by Leonard Foglia and known as the world's first mariachi opera, Cruzar has been performed to audiences around the world, including in New York City in January 2018. HGO's production will feature the Grammy Award-winning Mariachi Los Camperos. Tickets for these productions at the HGO Resilience Theater in the George R. Brown Convention Center are available at HGO.org. Parking is available at the Avenida North Garage located at 1815 Rusk Street, across from Resilience Theater. A sky bridge connects the parking garage to the GRB, and clear signage directs patrons to the theater. More information about parking can be found here.
NOTES FROM THE FIELD, the adaptation of Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee Anna Deavere Smith's acclaimed one-woman show of the same name, will debut SATURDAY, FEB. 24 on HBO.
Rising actress and lyric soprano Natalia Ferreiro will shine bright in the Los Angeles premiere of the world's first mariachi musical, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (To Cross the Face of the Moon). at the Valley Performing Arts Center - The Soraya.
Houston Grand Opera presents Bernstein's West Side Story (April 20 - May 6), Bellini's Norma (April 27 - May 11), and return of Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (May 17, 19, 20) at HGO Resilience Theater World's first mariachi opera returns after New York triumph Houston, January 29, 2018 - Houston Grand Opera (HGO) will present the first major American opera house production of Leonard Bernstein ' s landmark musical West Side Story, April 20 - May 6, and Bellini's vocal powerhouse Norma, April 27 - May 11, in the HGO Resil i ence Theater at the George R. Brown Convention Center.
In many areas of the arts in New York, January is a quiet month. But in the opera world, the last few weeks certainly have been jumping. It has also been a fine time for asking 'What is an Opera?' For me, January started with Prototype 2018's ACQUANETTA and ended this past weekend--with many in between--with New York City Opera's 'first mariachi opera,' CRUZAR LA CARA DE LA LUNA (TO CROSS THE FACE OF THE MOON).
Following the success of its fall productions of Puccini's beloved La Fanciulla del West and the New York premiere of Tobias Picker's Dolores Claiborne, New York City Opera continues the 2017/2018 season in January 2018 with the New York premiere of Jos 'Pepe' Mart nez and Leonard Foglia's Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, the world's first mariachi opera.
New York City Opera will present the celebrated Italian soprano Anna Caterina Antonacci in her highly anticipated return to New York on Tuesday, February 20 at 7:30 p.m. Due to popular demand, City Opera has added a second performance the following night, Wednesday, February 21 at 7:30 p.m. Both concerts will be at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall. Ms. Antonacci will perform a program tailored for City Opera featuring works by Debussy, Nadia Boulanger, Respighi, Britten, and Poulenc with her longtime collaborator pianist Donald Sulzen. The concerts will be Ms. Antonacci's first appearance in the U.S. in nearly three seasons.
San Francisco Opera General Director Matthew Shilvock today announced plans for the 2018 19 Season. The Company's 96th Season will open Friday, September 7 with a gala double-bill performance of Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and Ruggero Leoncavallo's Pagliacci in Jos Cura's production with an international cast featuring Lianna Haroutounian, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Roberto Aronica, Marco Berti and Dimitri Platanias, conducted by Daniele Callegari. To usher in the new opera season, San Francisco Opera Guild will produce its signature benefit event, Opera Ball 2018.
San Francisco Opera General Director Matthew Shilvock today announced plans for the 2018 19 Season. The Company's 96th Season will open Friday, September 7 with a gala double-bill performance of Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and Ruggero Leoncavallo's Pagliacci in Jos Cura's production with an international cast featuring Lianna Haroutounian, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Roberto Aronica, Marco Berti and Dimitri Platanias, conducted by Daniele Callegari. To usher in the new opera season, San Francisco Opera Guild will produce its signature benefit event, Opera Ball 2018.
The world's first mariachi musical Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (To Cross the Face of the Moon) created by Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan's Jose Pepe Martinez and Broadway's Leonard Foglia, will have its Los Angeles premiere at the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya) on Friday, February 16 at 8:00pm, Saturday, February 17 at 8:00pm and Sunday, February 18 at 3:00pm.
Following the success of its fall productions of Puccini's beloved La Fanciulla del West and the New York premiere of Tobias Picker's Dolores Claiborne, New York City Opera continues the 2017/2018 season in January 2018 with the New York premiere of Jos 'Pepe' Mart nez and Leonard Foglia's Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, the world's first mariachi opera.
NOTES FROM THE FIELD, the adaptation of Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee Anna Deavere Smith's acclaimed one-woman show of the same name, will debut SATURDAY, FEB. 24 on HBO.