Ravinia Festival News

Theater for the New City, Crystal Field, Executive Director, and The After Dinner Opera Company present two new American operatic musical adaptations from classical works, Seymour Barab's operatic parody Out the Window based upon Georges Feydeux's farce 'Par La Fenetre;' and Rappaccini's Daughter, based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's gothic short story, with libretto by Linsey Abrams and music by Michael Cohen. Lissa Moira directs. Performances will be staged at the Cino Theatre at Theater for the New City, 155 First Avenue (bet. 9th and 10th Streets), New York, NY 10003 from tonight, September 11-28, 2014.

American Opera Projects and LivelyWorks present Two Premieres and a Reunion, a special evening of music by composer Conrad Cummings tonight, September 10th, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. at The National Opera Center, 330 Seventh Avenue, Manhattan.

Washington National Opera (WNO) presents An Evening with Stephen Costello and Ailyn Pe?rez, featuring the celebrated husband-and-wife stars of last season's production of The Elixir of Love, tonight, September 10, 2014 in the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. Accompanied on piano by Danielle Orlando, Costello and Pe?rez will perform songs, arias, and duets from popular works by Verdi, Puccini, Hahn, Tosti, Falla, Heggie, and more.

Conductor Bramwell Tovey returns to the Hollywood Bowl to lead the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Women of Pacific Chorale in Gustav Holst's The Planets tonight, September 9, at 8 pm. The performance will be accompanied by astonishing high-definition images from NASA and JPL rovers and satellites, as well as computer-generated graphics of the Mars landing.

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents one of the greatest contemporary voices of our time, Linda Eder, at the Cabaret at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue, on Monday, October 6, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. This performance is part of the TRUST Cabaret Series, presented by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. This series provides a unique and intimate opportunity for audiences to experience the finest cabaret acts in the entertainment industry.

San Francisco Opera presents the Company premiere of Carlisle Floyd's two-act opera Susannah today, September 6 at the War Memorial Opera House.

Conductor Bramwell Tovey returns to the Hollywood Bowl to lead the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Women of Pacific Chorale in Gustav Holst's The Planets on Tuesday, September 9, at 8 pm. The performance will be accompanied by astonishing high-definition images from NASA and JPL rovers and satellites, as well as computer-generated graphics of the Mars landing.

Jay Henderson, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association (CSOA), announced today the appointment of Jeff Alexander to the position of President of the CSOA, effectiveJanuary 12, 2015.

Due to popular demand, American Opera Projects and LivelyWorks have added a second performance of Two Premieres and a Reunion, a special evening of music by composer Conrad Cummings Wednesday September 10th, 2014. The second performance will take place at 9:00 p.m., immediately after the initial 7:30 p.m. performance. Both performances will be held at The National Opera Center, 330 Seventh Avenue, Manhattan.

Celebrate the publication of Bernstein Meets Broadway: Collaborative Art in a Time of War (Oxford University Press) at Barnes and Noble, 86th Street & Lexington Avenue, New York City, on Monday, September 15, 2014 at 7PM.

The toe-tapping, heartfelt musical "Always…Patsy Cline" created and originally directed by Ted Swindley is based on a true story. It opens Sept. 3 at Peninsula Players Theatre, America's oldest professional resident summer theater and Door County's theatrical icon. "Always…Patsy Cline" features more than 25 of Cline's classic songs and will run for seven weeks closing Sunday, Oct. 19 with a 4 p.m. matinee.

Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Executive Director Kathryn M. Lipuma announce Writers Theatre's opener to its 2014/15 season: the Midwest Premiere of Isaac's Eye by Lucas Hnath, directed by Artistic Director Michael Halberstam. The show runs September 2 - December 7, 2014 at Books on Vernon, 664 Vernon Ave Ave, Glencoe. The Press Openings are Wednesday, September 10, 2014 and Thursday, September 11, 2014, at 7:30pm.

According to the New York Times, Ravinia Festival music director James Conlon announced that he will depart his position after the 2015 season. He told NYT: "I have worked year-round, including every summer, since 1974. There are things I wish to accomplish, both musical and personal, and I need dedicated time to realize these projects."

Birdland: Jazz Club NYC, presents Stephen Wallem in 'A Burley Night Music' the concert, with direction by Tony-nominee John Tartaglia and musical direction by Beckie Menzie, is a musical and anecdotal retrospective of a very high voice trapped in a very large body. Featuring song from Wallem's big and/or 'simple' guy roles including Shrek in Shrek the musical, Hazel in Pipe Dreams, and Horton the Elephant in Seussical, as well as songs from Hairspray, Elf, Anna Nicole the Opera, The Land Before Time and The Addams Family, all celebrating the big-boned beauty of Broadway and Hollywood. Directed by Tony-nominee John Tartaglia, with original songs, a three-piece band and surprise celebrity guest appearances.

Grammy and Brit Award winning musician Midge Ure, OBE (Officer of the British Empire - awarded in 2005) will be releasing his first album of original material in over a decade next week, via eOne Music.

American Opera Projects and LivelyWorks present Two Premieres and a Reunion, a special evening of music by composer Conrad Cummings Wednesday September 10th, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. at The National Opera Center, 330 Seventh Avenue, Manhattan.

Theater for the New City, Crystal Field, Executive Director, and The After Dinner Opera Company present two new American operatic musical adaptations from classical works, Seymour Barab's operatic parody Out the Window based upon Georges Feydeux's farce 'Par La Fenetre;' and Rappaccini's Daughter, based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's gothic short story, with libretto by Linsey Abrams and music by Michael Cohen. Lissa Moira directs.

Ailyn Perez, born and bred in Chicago, returns to her hometown's famous Ravinia Festival for two performances (Aug 14 & 16) as Zerlina in Mozart's Don Giovanni - a role that the Dallas Morning News has said shows her to be 'a singer of considerable nuance.' LA Opera Music Director James Conlon leads the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for the run, which also features baritone Christopher Maltman in the title role, baritone David Bizi? as Leporello, soprano Tamara Wilson as Donna Anna and tenor Saimir Pirgu as Don Ottavio. The Chicago Tribune praised Perez's 2012 appearance at Ravinia, as Pamina in Die Zauberflote, as 'show-stopping…all floating pianissimos and diminuendos and delicate pathos, which roused the sold-out crowd to a long, well-deserved ovation.'

San Francisco Opera presents the Company premiere of Carlisle Floyd's two-act opera Susannah September 6 at the War Memorial Opera House. Soprano Patricia Racette returns to San Francisco Opera in her role debut as the innocent, strong-willed and falsely accused young woman Susannah Polk.

The Old Globe today announced the full cast and creative team for the World Premiere of Bright Star, a new American musical featuring music by Edie Brickell and Steve Martin, lyrics by Brickell, and book by Martin, based on an original story by Martin and Brickell. Directed by Walter Bobbie, Bright Star will run September 13 - November 2, 2014 on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Preview performances run September 13 - September 27. Opening night is Sunday, September 28 at 7:00 p.m. Single tickets go on sale on Friday, August 8 at noon.