Mark Campbell News

Kevin Puts's Silent Night, winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize in Music with libretto by Mark Campbell, will be performed throughout the 2018–19 concert season by multiple ensembles in commemoration of the centennial of the signing of the armistice of WWI.

You can't accuse Opera Philadelphia's O18 Festival--running September 20-30 at various city venues--of being predictable. But no one would chastise you if you were to think: How do you follow-up what seems like a once-in-a-lifetime event, last year's O17? Well, as Monty Python used to say, 'And now for something completely different...'

This fall, contemporary opera producer AMERICAN OPERA PROJECTS (AOP) will present COMPOSERS & THE VOICE: SIX SCENES 2018, a showcase concert of opera scenes from nine artists emerging in the world of contemporary opera. Audiences will get a first look at six wildly different new works invoking diverse settings such as the Arab Spring in Tunisia, a post-apocalyptic future, and a modern college campus and exploring a multitude of themes and concepts, including the emotional minefield of solar flares, the dissonance of fundamentalism in urban and regional communities, and the nature and validity of Opera itself. The composers Matt Browne, Scott Ordway, Frances Pollock, Pamela Stein Lynde, Amber Vistein and Alex Weiser, and librettists Laura Barati, Kim Davies, andSokunthary Svay, were chosen by AOP to spend a year creating new works in its bi-annual fellowship program Composers & the Voice (C&V). The evening will be hosted by C&V Artistic Director Steven Osgood.

Casting has been announced for the Indianapolis return of Disney's THE LION KING, which will leap onto the stage at Old National Centre from September 12 for a limited three week engagement through September 29.

The Lion King brings the magic of Pride Rock to the Queen City (Charlotte) with spectacular choreography, costumes and music that takes your imagination right in the middle of an African Safari. Yes, the magic of Disney is showcased in living color.

As Disney's megahit reaches its 21st Broadway birthday, we're not asking each other anymore if you've seen THE LION KING. Instead we're apt to ask how many times you've seen this unparalleled spectacle or, more nostalgically, 'Do you remember your first time?'

The New York City Opera, under the leadership of General Director Michael Capasso, announces three new productions in addition to its previously announced June 2019 premiere of Iain Bell and Mark Campbell's opera, STONEWALL. City Opera's 2018-19 season will open Monday, October 22 at (le) Poisson Rouge with a production of Astor Piazzolla's “tango operita” MARIA de BUENOS AIRES. The fourth installment in the company's popular Ópera en Español series, this co-production with Atlanta Opera features soprano Catalina Cuervo, the world's foremost interpreter of the title role. The intimate production, conducted by Jorge Parodi and directed by Atlanta Opera General director Tomer Zvulun, has been praised by Opera News for its “undeniable authenticity.”

On September 15th, Opera San Jose's 35th season opens with Mozart's comedy The Abduction from the Seraglio. The opera was commissioned by Emperor Joseph II, and as the myth goes when he first heard it, he complained to Mozart, 'That is too fine for my ears - there are too many notes.' Mozart replied, 'There are just as many notes as there should be.'

With just a little over ten weeks until the 67th Wexford Festival Opera kicks-off, some updates to the artistic programme have been announced.

Disney's The Lion King opened at The Bushnell for its three-week showing in Hartford, bringing the popular movie to life on stage.

Casting has been announced for the Charlotte return of Disney's THE LION KING, which will leap onto the stage at Belk Theater from Wednesday, Aug. 22 through Sunday, Sept. 9, presented by Blumenthal Performing Arts.

The new classical series Only at Merkin with Terrance McKnight, featuring, among others, the world-renowned pianists Andre Watts and Ursula Oppens; the world premiere of a piano quintet by acclaimed new music composer Laura Kaminsky; and presentations by Academy and Grammy Awards winner Kristen Anderson-Lopez (Frozen); Emmy, Tony, Grammy and Academy Awards winner Bobby Lopez (Frozen); Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winners Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey (Next to Normal); and 10-time Tony winner Maury Yeston (Titanic, Nine) are among the numerous highlights of the Kaufman Music Center's diverse 2018-19 season at Merkin Hall.

Peak Performances kicks off its 2018-19 season with the world premiere of Hatuey: Memory of Fire, a rousing Afro-Cuban-Yiddish opera performed in English, Yiddish and Spanish, with music by Frank London, libretto by Elise Thoron, direction by Mary Birnbaum, and choreography by Maija Garcia.

When Stephen Sondheim was asked was asked about whether his great musical drama SWEENEY TODD was a musical or an opera, he once responded, “When it's done in a theatre, it's a musical. When it's done in an opera house, it's an opera.” Well, then, what about HAMILTON, the musical sensation of our time? Is it possible that it's (gasp!) an opera waiting to emerge?

The San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) today announces the details of its 2018-19 season, the 101st year of the institution's existence. After celebrating the Conservatory's centennial last season, SFCM looks to the future in its curricular model combining performance, history, and the humanities in thematically linked programming. This season's theme, 'Sound and Image,' brings the fine arts together with classes, concerts, and other events that examine the relationship between music, visual art, and the moving image.

The Glimmerglass Festival will present the world premiere of Blue, a new opera by Jeanine Tesori and Tazewell Thompson that dives into the emotional epicenter of a black couple coming to terms with the sudden death of their teenage son. The production will open in July 2019 as part of the company's 2019 Festival.

See stars from New York City Opera's Pride Series productions (Brokeback Mountain and Angels in America) and other City Opera cast members, this concert includes music from West Side Story, La traviata, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Rigoletto, La boheme, and a special guest appearance from Stonewall librettist, Pulitzer Prize-winner Mark Campbell, as well as Eric Marcus, chair of the Stonewall at 50 Consortium. Featured singers include Michael Chioldi, Glenn Seven Allen, Brandie Sutton, Sarah Heltzel, Victor Starsky, Ken Overton, Lianne Gennaco, Michael Weyandt, and more!

In their astounding new opera The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, composer Mason Bates and librettist Mark Campbell explore the spiritual evolution of one of the most influential men of modern times as he creates a revolutionary new world of technological empowerment, then discovers a larger world within himself.

Portland Opera is pleased to announce programming for the company's 55th season, scheduled to begin in November 2018. The season will launch with the recently announced "November classic" - Verdi's heartbreaking romance La Traviata - bringing opera back to Portland in the fall months. In March, Portland Opera will present Laura Kaminsky's brave and beautiful coming-of-age story, As One, where two voices, a mezzo-soprano and a baritone, share the role of the transgender heroine Hannah. The season will continue in the spring with the company's annual Big Night concert and a bright and vibrant production of Rossini's great Il Barbiere di Siviglia. In July, the company will present Mozart's La Finta Giardiniera for the first time, followed by the company premiere of Philip Glass's exploration of the nature of justice, In the Penal Colony, based on Franz Kafka's short story.

The Atlanta Opera closes its 2017-18 mainstage season with Stephen Sondheim's seminal musical, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. This production of Sweeney Todd remains faithful to the original Broadway show, and features an all-star cast, including Michael Mayes in his role debut as Sweeney Todd, and Maria Zifchak as Mrs. Lovett. Timothy Myers will conduct in a company debut, and Albert Sherman, who has directed Sweeney Todd under the mentorship of Harold Prince, will serve as production director.