Opera Philadelphia Will Present An Evening Of Vocal Fireworks Next Week

Two of classical music's most thrilling tenors come together with Opera Philadelphia for a beautiful summer evening of vocal pyrotechnics, picnics under the stars, and a dazzling fireworks display. "An Evening of Vocal Fireworks" spotlights the incredible talents of tenors Lawrence Brownlee and Michael Spyres in friendly sing-off on Thursday, Aug. 26, at 7:00 p.m. at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts.

The special pre-season concert, part of the Mann's Summer Picnic Series, reunites the "dueling tenors" for the first live performance in North America of music from their critically acclaimed 2020 album, Amici e Rivali (Friends & Rivals), featuring arias and duets from some of Rossini's most beloved operas such as The Barber of Seville and rarely heard works like Ricciardo e Zoraide, plus a few surprises. Jack Mulroney Music Director Corrado Rovaris leads the Opera Philadelphia Orchestra and Chorus from the TD Pavilion stage. The evening concludes with a display of fireworks high above the Fairmount Park concert venue.

The concert marks Opera Philadelphia's first full capacity event in 18 months (a May 2021 concert series was limited to just 500 participants per night). Lawn seating at the Mann is just $25, and picnics are encouraged at the venue to enjoy before and during the show. Parking at the venue is free.

The concert and album all grew out of an incredible viral video shot in 2018 at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, as Brownlee and Spyres engaged in an incredible encore duet of "Ah! Vieni nel tuo sangue" from Rossini's Otello. The buzz led to the development of the groundbreaking Warner Classics album Amici e Rivali - Friends and Rivals - comprising more than a dozen arias, duets, and trios from seven of the composer's operas. The "dueling tenors" album, conducted by Opera Philadelphia's Corrado Rovaris, was released in November 2020 to critical acclaim, with Opera News raving "Spyres is riveting" and "Brownlee is awesome in his dazzling technical ease and sheer grace," and The New Yorker declaring, "Amici e Rivali is a nice reminder of the sparks that fly when two first-rate voices meet in the playground of a Rossini opera."

"Listening to these tenor duets is great entertainment, and sometimes akin to watching an athletic contest," marveled Philadelphia's classical music station WRTI-FM (90.1).

Tickets: operaphila.org | 215.732.8400

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