Talking with singers: Craig Colclough

Interview

Immaturity may not seem like it goes hand-in-hand with an artist who is serious about his work, but Colclough makes a great point. "If you get too serious or too full of yourself or too jaded," he says, "you start cutting off emotional parts of yourself that you need to use onstage." It's part of what's scary about singing or acting, to be an open, vulnerable person, in life as well as at work.

Don't miss Datong: The Chinese Utopia

Interview

"The Kang Youwei story, especially the Hundred Days Reform, has riveted modern Chinese audiences for more than a century, probably as a reminder of the setback for China's political modernization. The incident has been reimagined in movies many times."

Talking with singers: Angela Meade

Interview

I also feel like I've always connected with Norma's character. She, like Donna Anna, is a strong woman, caught in the politics of her situation. Even though she is the one in charge of the Druids, she is still expected to maintain decorum regarding her sexual life and especially with those in the enemy camp. She is a bit impulsive and falls in love deeply and quickly, and so when she is burned by Pollione the flames of betrayal, hurt, pain and desperation engulf her.

Meet the folks: Collectìf

Interview

"We were all coming to the end of our academic careers at around the same time. We were looking to create something interesting, and we wanted to be our own bosses. Each of us adds something totally unique to the dynamic of the group, and we are completed by Tom King, who has been out pianist for every show."

La finta giardiniera, coming to a garden near you

Interview

"Even though he wrote this opera at 18 years old, Mozart (it is no surprise) paints incredibly rich pictures of love and relationships with the perfect balance of humor and pathos. The opera doesn't try to pass judgement on any one couple or their actions. Instead, by presenting these many difference faces of love, we are able to find pieces of ourselves and our own relationships across all of the characters."

New companies to discover: Gramercy Opera

Interview

"There are so many amazingly talented artists in New York City, our goal is to embrace them, creating beautiful art and entertaining performances. We are extremely inspired by what LoftOpera is doing in Brooklyn. We hope to follow in their footsteps on a smaller scale in Manhattan: producing exciting performances at affordable prices and encouraging younger people to make opera part of their lives."

The Italian Girl in Algiers: Rossini's "feminist celebration"

Interview

"I think when The Italian Girl in Algiers was written it was really ahead of its time. Composed in 1813 and based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli written in 1808, the opera has really progressive views on women at a time when they had very little rights or independence. It's a feminist celebration written by two 19th-century men that easily translates into the 21st-century. The heroine Isabella is a brave and adventurous woman who cannot be outwitted."

Thousands of Miles: "It's raw."

Interview

Listening to Thousands of Miles is a complete treat. Lindsey's clear, warm mezzo is certainly versatile, but she has also chosen her repertoire wisely. It's the sound of the Weill songs that seems to inform the rest of the music on this album; though the songs by Zemlinsky, Korngold, and Alma Mahler can easily fall in the world of late-Romantic German Lieder, there's a delicious flavour in the way Lindsey and Trotignon perform them.

Spotlight on: Caitlin Wood

Interview

"Being a good colleague will get you much further and faster than being just a 'good singer'. People want to work with talented singers but they also want to make the experience as pleasant as possible. Be on time, know your music, be respectful in rehearsals, and be generous with your colleagues."

Talking with singers: Sasha Cooke

Interview

Hers is a career that proves the value of working well with one's contemporaries, be they professional or academic. "You don't realize when you're young that everyone around you will continue to be around you. Treat people well, be grateful." Cooke knows well that no musician is an island, and "in a way, being a musician is a perfect heightened example of being human. We are all dependent on one another."