San Diego Opera's 60th Anniversary La bohème sees Mimì as a ghost
News
Ottawa's Barber is brushing up his skills
NewsOpera Lyra Ottawa's production of The Barber of Seville opens September 26th, and not only will baritone Joshua Hopkins sing the title role (Torontonians caught him in the COC's Barber last spring), he'll be getting a lesson in the tonsorial arts (#wordoftheday!) from House of Barons Barber Shop.
Schmopera takes a breather
NewsA quick heads-up, readers: for the month of August, Schmopera will be changing pace. We'll go from our usual peppy allegro to more of an larghetto, as we take, #waitforit, a vacation!
#UncleJohn takes Ottawa
NewsAlso heading to Canada's capital are the Cecilia String Quartet led by Music Director Miloš Repický. I was lucky enough to help out on the music end for a short while, a bizarre-in-a-great-way reunion of people and ideas. It's an impressive thing to watch such a strong cast reconvene; there's efficient work in a show-specific shorthand, but there are still questions about the space, the audience, the dialogue, all in the name of keeping #UncleJohn fresh.
A summer surprise
NewsOn this beautiful Saturday morning, we've got exciting news to announce! For four weeks starting Monday, I'll be writing from the beautiful Banff Centre, where I'll be joining Against the Grain Theatre and the Canadian Opera Company at Open Space: Opera in the 21st Century. I'll be there to music direct the workshop production of James Rolfe's new opera, Crush, which is a completely cool take (homage?) on the Don Juan story and Mozart's Don Giovanni.
Trans opera singer to sing national anthem at Oakland A's game
NewsThere's a lot going on these days with 25 year-old soprano Breanna Sinclairé. On June 17th, she will sing the US national anthem at the opening of the Oakland Athletics game against the San Diego Padres. A look at her YouTube page shows an aspiring young soprano with her head in the right places. Lots of Leontyne Price and Beyoncé.
Hear the TSO for free!
NewsAs a thank-you to its loyal audience, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Peter Oundjian are presenting a free concert at Roy Thomson Hall, July 7th at 12:30pm. The concert is a generous closing to a packed 2014/15 season at the TSO, which included Lang Lang's at the 2nd annual Chinese New Year Celebration, Emanuel Ax curating the RBC Piano Extravaganza, and the North American première of George Benjamin's opera, Written on Skin, starring the incomparable Barbara Hannigan.
Soundstreams announces the cast of Julie
NewsThis November, Soundstreams present the North American premiere of Julie, the chamber opera by Philippe Boesmans, based on the 1888 Strindberg play, Miss Julie. "Depicting a flirtation that turns into an erotic danse macabre between its aristocratic title character and her father’s valet, August Strindberg’s play Miss Julie was considered too scandalous to be produced when it was written in 1888—only to become a defining classic of modern drama."
Go hear Majesty, Madness & Murder
NewsNext week, Ontario audiences have a chance to hear two exciting young sopranos in recital. On June 16 (Hamilton) and June 19 (Toronto), Teiya Kasahara and Stephanie Yelovich present *Majesty, Madness & Murder: An evening of Italian Opera and Art Song*, to raise funds towards tuition for the Operavision Academy in Urbania, Italy.
The Dallas Opera picks its Women Conductors
NewsThe Dallas Opera has created a new residential program, the Institute for Women Conductors. "This program has already generated tremendous international interest, and over extremely 100 talented women applied -- from the U.S. and 26 other countries. The field was extremely competitive, and the acceptance on the program is recognition of the significant accomplishments in the candidate’s career to date."
Singers branching out
NewsWithin the last few weeks, a few of today's most admired opera singers have announced how they keep making waves in the industry, this time from off-stage.