Opinion: critics who body-shame are bad at their job

Op-Ed

It's my thought that reviewers who disparage singers' bodies are only telling us some ugly things about themselves: that they don't think fat people can fall in love or have romantic experiences, and that they don't have anything better to say about an opera production even after the two years of shit we all went through with stages being shuttered.

Daniel shines in Manitoba Opera's Gala Concert

Review

The crowd rose to their feet after this aria, applauding and cheering an downright incredible performance. And her singing in the final quartet, from Verdi's Rigoletto, reminded me of Denyce Graves.

Talking with singers: Étienne Dupuis

Interview

“My answer was always the same, and I think confinement has just strengthened it,” Dupuis says. “It's because, emotionally, we need to share something communally.”

Review: Re-telling stories with Amplify 1.0

Review

It's been quite the long-haul here in the GTA, but it's great to be back on the beat. After two years out of the habit, it was great to find myself at the Museum of Contemporary Art to check out Amplified Opera's first offering in their concert series — after several delays — AMPLIFY 1.0.

Talking with singers: Pene Pati

Interview

"I like having the feeling that I can bring a poster home from the Wiener Staatsoper or from the Met or from the San Francisco Opera and it has his name on it rather than mine. I feel like it's a good tribute to the man who’s raised me. I also sing for my island of Samoa and I sing for the Pacific people who don't really have this opportunity."

A psyche in vignettes: Steve Jobs in Kansas City

Review

The dramatic irony of someone denying paternity (but yet still naming his first computer model after his daughter Lisa) who was no doubt questioning his own lineage is fascinating. Jobs' treatment of the women, and other people, in his life is a dark theme in the work.

Surreal, Devastating Journeys Through Nighttown

Review

All I can say, is that I think this opera has an immense future in the opera house, and I cannot wait to see the life it is no doubt going to take.

Opera InReach to stream Art For Peace: A Fundraising Concert for Ukraine

Editorial

"Exploring themes of resilience, hope, and justice, Art for Peace aims to raise funds for Ukrainian individuals in need while also demanding peace in Ukraine," Opera InReach says of Art For Peace. The concert is also supported by the Ukrainian Art Song Project, Tapestry Opera, Against the Grain Theatre, and individual international artists.

Opera + politics + blurry lines + being kind

Editorial

At the same time, if you wear blackface in 2019, you've got to be quite stubborn indeed not to apologize for it. And if you're an opera singer who insists that opera-singing shouldn't be interrupted by a pandemic, I think that you show a really low level of humility.

A Sunday afternoon at Carnegie Hall

Review

The composite was a perceptive and refreshingly theatrical portrait of a complex and insightful woman, a musically shimmering, angry and sometimes languid conclusion to an extraordinary Sunday afternoon at Carnegie Hall.