Quinn Kelsey News

Yannick Nezet-Seguin conducts Michael Mayer's richly textured new production of Verdi's La Traviata for The Metropolitan Opera, featuring a dazzling 18th-century setting that changes with the seasons. Soprano Diana Damrau plays the tragic heroine, Violetta, and tenor Juan Diego Florez returns to the Met for the first time in five seasons to sing the role of Alfredo, Violetta's hapless lover. Baritone Quinn Kelsey is Alfredo's father, Germont, who destroys their love. See La Traviata in HD on the big screen at The Ridgefield Playhouse Saturday, December 22 at 12:30pm, part of Atria Senior Living Classical Series with support from Whistle Stop Bakery, underwritten by Jeanne Cook, Liz and Steven Goldstone, & Sabina and Walter Slavin.

The 2018-19 season of The Met: Live in HD will continue at the Warner Theatre on December 29 with an encore performance of Verdi's LA TRAVIATA at 12:55 pm in the Nancy Marine Studio Theatre. The 2018-19 season is sponsored by Viron Rondo Osteria. Please note that the previously scheduled pre-opera lecture for La Traviata has been cancelled.

Yannick Nezet-Seguin conducts Michael Mayer's richly textured new production, featuring a dazzling 19th-century setting that changes with the seasons. Soprano Diana Damrau plays the tragic heroine, Violetta, and tenor Juan Diego Florez returns to the Met for the first time since 2015 to sing the role of Alfredo, Violetta's hapless lover. Baritone Quinn Kelsey is Alfredo's father, Germont, who destroys their love. Later performances feature Anita Hartig, Stephen Costello, Artur Ruci?ski, and Placido Domingo.

Yannick Nezet-Seguin conducts Michael Mayer's richly textured new production of Verdi's La Traviata for The Metropolitan Opera, featuring a dazzling 18th-century setting that changes with the seasons. Soprano Diana Damrau plays the tragic heroine, Violetta, and tenor Juan Diego Florez returns to the Met for the first time in five seasons to sing the role of Alfredo, Violetta's hapless lover.

I caught up with rising star bass-baritone Christian Van Horn the other day, to find out what the devil was going on with his starring role in the Met's first performance of Arrigo Boito's MEFISTOFELE in almost 20 years. Were you nervous as hell (pun intended) on the first night, I asked Van Horn, winner of this year's prestigious Richard Tucker Award, in your role as the Devil?

The Metropolitan Opera's new production of La Traviata, opening December 4, will be the first opera conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin as the Met's Jeanette Lerman-Neubauer Music Director. Soprano Diana Damrau, who made her acclaimed role debut as Violetta at the Met during the 2012–2013 season (with Maestro Nézet-Séguin on the podium), returns as the tragic heroine.

In 2019, San Francisco's acclaimed Merola Opera Program will present the first opera commissioned in the Program's history, the world premiere of If I Were You, by distinguished American composer Jake Heggie and noted librettist Gene Scheer. This ground-breaking work will be presented August 1 - 6, 2019, at San Francisco's Herbst Theatre. Today it was announced the opera will be conducted by Nicole Paiement and directed by Keturah Stickann. Information is available at www.merola.org. Tickets will go on sale in Spring 2019.

Lyric Opera of Chicago is pleased to announce the participation of several outstanding singers in the Renee Fleming 25th Anniversary Concert & Gala*, to honor and celebrate American soprano Renee Fleming's extraordinary commitment to Chicago and her unparalleled contributions to our art form.

Sometimes, it's nice to remember a time when opera was all about wonderful singing, singing and more singing. Sunday's annual concert of the Richard Tucker Foundation--celebrating the current winner of its top prize, bass-baritone Christian Van Horn--was a great salute to this artist in particular but to the form in general. And the presence of opera-loving Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg—still doing her best to keep the flame at 85--was the cherry on the sundae.

On Sunday, October 21, the Richard Tucker Music Foundation's annual gala concert - one of the most highly anticipated operatic events of the season - will bring a galaxy of opera stars to the stage of Carnegie Hall. And opera-lovers around the world unable to make it in person will still have the opportunity to watch the performance live. Thanks to the foundation's partnership with medici.tv, the gala concert will be webcast live (6pm ET/3pm PT), free of charge, both on medici.tv and on medici.tv's Facebook page; the stream will subsequently be available for on-demand viewing for a limited period. In addition, the Richard Tucker Music Foundation continues its collaboration with WQXR 105.9 FM, New York's sole dedicated classical radio station, which will broadcast the performance to listeners in the New York metropolitan region and online at www.wqxr.org on November 10 at 1pm ET/10am PT.

Yonghoon Lee will sing Radamès in tonight's performance of Verdi's Aida, replacing Aleksandrs Antonenko, who is ill.

The synopsis of Verdi's AIDA, with Ghislanzoni's smart libretto, places it in 'Egypt, during the reign of the pharaohs.' For the first performance of the opera this season, on Wednesday, they should have changed that to 'during the reign of soprano Anna Netrebko,' because she owned the stage from the moment she entered.

Concluding its highly successful 61st season, the Merola Opera Program announces the establishment of an Advisory Council, comprised of leaders in  the field of opera performance, young artist training, arts administration, performing arts, and philanthropy.

The Metropolitan Opera's award-winning series of live high-definition cinema simulcasts in 70 countries on 6 continents will begin its 13th season with Verdi's grand production of Aida, starring one of the world's most acclaimed sopranos, Anna Netrebko. It is worth mentioning that the Rialto Theater introduced the program The Met: Live in HD to Cyprus on December 2012, again with the classic masterpiece of Verdi Aida.

The Metropolitan Opera's award-winning series of live high-definition cinema simulcasts will begin its 13th season at the WYO on October 13, with the Met's grand production of Verdi's Aida, starring one of the world's most acclaimed sopranos, Anna Netrebko.

Back home at Carnegie Hall for the third year running, the Richard Tucker Music Foundation's annual gala concert, one of the most highly anticipated operatic events of the season, will take place on Sunday, October 21.

Anna Netrebko makes her Met role debut in the title role of the enslaved Ethiopian princess in Verdi's tragedy of ancient Egypt, Aida, opening September 26. Anita Rachvelishvili sings the role of her formidable rival, Amneris, following the Georgian soprano's critically acclaimed portrayal of Azucena in Verdi's Il Trovatore last season. The cast also features Aleksandrs Antonenko as the warrior Radames, Quinn Kelsey as Aida's father, Amonasro, Dmitry Belosselskiy as the high priest Ramfis, and Ryan Speedo Green as the King, under the baton of Nicola Luisotti. The October 6 matinee will be transmitted worldwide, kicking off the Met's new Live in HD series, now reaching more than 2,000 movie theaters in 73 countries around the world.

The 2018-19 season of The Met: Live in HD will open at the Warner Theatre with Verdi's AIDA on Saturday, October 6 at 12:55 pm in the Nancy Marine Studio. The 2018-19 season is sponsored by Viron Rondo Osteria. A complimentary 45 minute pre-opera lecture by Dr. Marguerite Mullee will be offered in the Studio Theatre Lobby two hours before the broadcast, sponsored by Mitchell Auto Group. In what should be a highlight of the new season, soprano Anna Netrebko sings her first Met Aida, going toe-to-toe with mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili as Amneris. The cast also features tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko as Radames, Quinn Kelsey as Amonasro, Dmitry Belosselskiy as Ramfis and Ryan Speedo Green as The King. Nicola Luisotti will take the podium for the Met's monumental production.

Verdi's blazing depiction of life on the edge, Il Trovatore, returns in Sir David McVicar's compelling production for the Metropolitan Opera. The production features Jennifer Rowley as the noble heroine, Leonora, Yonghoon Lee as the troubadour who loves her, Quinn Kelsey and Luca Salsi as his rival, and Anita Rachvelishvili as the gypsy Azucena, whose bloodthirsty curse propels the story. Marco Armiliato conducts. See it on the big screen in HD at The Ridgefield Playhouse on Sunday, July 29 at 6:30pm, part of Benchmark Senior Living at Ridgefield Crossings Classical Series with support from The Ridgefield Press and Whistle Stop Bakery and underwritten by Lori and John Berisford, Jeanne Cook, Liz and Steven Goldstone & Sabina and Walter Slavin.