Stewart Wallace News

San Francisco Opera presents the world premiere of Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng's Dream of the Red Chamber, with a libretto by the composer and David Henry Hwang, in six performances from tonight, September 10, through September 29, 2016.

War Paint has become the most successful musical in Goodman Theatre's history, extended (for a second and final time) through August 21.

San Francisco Opera presents the world premiere of Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng's Dream of the Red Chamber, with a libretto by the composer and David Henry Hwang, in six performances from September 10-29, 2016.

Goodman Theatre announces Broadway stars John Dossett and Douglas Sills will join the cast of War Paint, a new musical starring two-time Tony Award winners Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole as Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, respectively. Dossett will portray Tommy Lewis, Miss Arden's husband and chief marketing officer, and Sills will portray the ambitious Harry Fleming, Madame Rubinstein's clubby confidante and faithful ally.

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $82 million to fund local arts projects and partnerships in the NEA's second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2016.  Included in this announcement is an Art Works award of $40,000 to American Lyric Theater (ALT) in support of the Composer Librettist Development Program. The Art Works category supports the creation of work and presentation of both new and existing work, lifelong learning in the arts, and public engagement with the arts through 13 arts disciplines or fields.

An absurdist mash-up of the lives of great Ashcan artist Edward Hopper and the infamous gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, HOPPER'S WIFE--by composer Stewart Wallace and librettist Michael Korie--had its belated New York premiere last weekend by New York City Opera, in a clever production by Andreas Mitisek.

New York City Opera presents the New York premiere of HOPPER'S WIFE by composer Stewart Wallace, set to a libretto by Michael Korie.

Having earned accolades for his work at Long Beach Opera (LBO) and Chicago Opera Theater (COT), Andreas Mitisek has been chosen to direct New York City Opera's (NYCO) production of Hopper's Wife. The opera is by composer Stewart Wallace with a libretto by Michael Korie. The new staging will mark the East Coast premiere of the opera and will be Mitisek's New York City directorial debut. Performances will take place on April 28, 29, 30 and May 1, 2016 at Harlem Stage (150 Convent Ave, New York, NY).

Goodman Theatre has announced Broadway stars John Dossett and Douglas Sills will join the cast of War Paint, a new musical starring two-time Tony Award winners Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole as Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, respectively. Dossett will portray Tommy Lewis, Miss Arden's husband and chief marketing officer, and Sills will portray the ambitious Harry Fleming, Madame Rubinstein's clubby confidante and faithful ally.  

The premiere of JFK in Fort Worth on April 23 is a big step forward for composer David T. Little and librettist Royce Vavrek--who made a splash in contemporary opera circles with their post-apocalyptic DOG DAYS--as their first 'grand' opera. It's also a major leap for American Lyric Theater (ALT), and its founder and artistic director, Lawrence Edelson, which co-commissioned the work with the Fort Worth Opera.

New York City Opera presents the New York premiere of HOPPER'S WIFE by composer Stewart Wallace, set to a libretto by Michael Korie.

Damian Woetzel continues his DEMO series uniting artists around a common theme, April 22-23, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. in the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. This installment of the multi-genre series features Memphis jookin' dance pioneer Lil Buck, along with fellow jooker Ron "Prime Tyme" Myles, and musicians Sandeep Das (tabla), Johnny Gandelsman (violin), Cristina Pato (gaita), Wu Tong (sheng), David Teie (cello), and singer, song-writer, and multi-instrumentalist Kate Davis. This adventurous cast of musicians and dancers will explore, through their performances, the worlds they came from, collaboratively reinventing their own instruments and art forms around the theme of Place.

The American Academy of Arts and Letters announces that librettist/lyricist Michael Korie will receive the Marc Blitzstein Award for Musical Theater of $10,000. Established in 1965 by friends of the late Academician Marc Blitzstein in his memory, the award is given to a composer, lyricist, or librettist to encourage the creation of works of merit for musical theater and opera. The jurors were John Harbison (chairman), J. D. McClatchy, Shulamit Ran, Augusta Read Thomas, and Yehudi Wyner.

San Francisco Opera today announced additional details for the Company's world premiere commission DREAM OF THE RED CHAMBER by renowned Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng, opening at the War Memorial Opera House on September 10, 2016.

?The 32nd season of the Schwabacher Debut Recitals continues on Sunday, March 29 at Temple Emanu-El's Martin Meyer Sanctuary with soprano Julie Adams and pianist John Churchwell. Adams and Churchwell will present a program of works by Alfred Bachelet, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Edvard Grieg, Sergei Rachmaninov and Lee Hoiby.

In collaboration with San Francisco Opera, the 2015 Stanford Pan-Asian Music Festival will preview the upcoming world premiere with a free panel discussion and performances of an excerpt from the opera by the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra from China this weekend, February 20 and 21 at Stanford University.

San Francisco Opera today announced two key artistic personnel for the Company's world premiere commission, Dream of the Red Chamber by renowned Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng (Madame Mao, The Silver River). Premiering Fall 2016 at the War Memorial Opera House, Dream of the Red Chamber will be conducted by American maestro George Manahan and staged by celebrated Taiwanese director Stan Lai in his Company debut.

San Francisco Opera Center and the Merola Opera Program present the 33rd season of the Schwabacher Debut Recitals, beginning February 8, 2015 with soprano Erin Johnson and pianist Sun Ha Yoon at Temple Emanu-El's Martin Meyer Sanctuary in San Francisco.

San Francisco Opera General Director David Gockley and San Francisco Opera Association President Keith Geeslin today announced that Gockley will retire in July 2016, concluding a ten-year, seven-month tenure with the Company and capping an internationally acclaimed and award-winning career spanning 44 years as one of America's most prominent opera impresarios. Gockley, who will be 73 at the end of the 2015–16 season, became the Company's sixth general director when he joined San Francisco Opera in January 2006. Today's announcement was made at a War Memorial Opera House press conference.