Slightly unsettling: The Overcoat

Review

Sometimes they'll just lay under the bed and watch the action taking place, or curl up into a corner; it is creepy and odd, but works so well for this style.

Grappling with daily life: WNO's Candide

Review

The production is the focal point of the Kennedy Center's programming in honor of Bernstein's 100th birthday, and amounts to the most enjoyable night of theater offered by WNO this season with its just-right combination of thrilling music, vocal gymnastics, impressive theatrical effects, belly-aching comedy, and effective storytelling.

Exquisite singing in the COC's Anna Bolena

Review

It's not the most dramatically fulfilling show but the singing is exquisite. The show definitely could have benefitted from (more than) a few judicious cuts. It's one thing when the text is repeated in a number, it's quite another when it's repeated in three or four.

Abrahamyan's Carmen "smooth, sexy, and enticing."

Review

There was a lot about this production that I enjoyed - Corner's staging keeps the energy and feel of Bizet's original piece while also allowing for Atlanta Opera's chorus to provide some of their trademark cheekiness within the larger chorus numbers.

Touching & traditional: Eugene Onegin in Vancouver

Review

As one of the few non-Russian principals, one would think she'd be at a disadvantage, but her diction was so flawless, that a native Russian speaker in attendance was amazed that it wasn't her first language. I hope this role becomes a staple in her repertoire.

Heartbeat's Giovanni successfully bucks tradition

Review

From the overture's opening measures, the band produced genuine chamber music. Gleb Kanasevich, whose playing I've admired since his conservatory days, had increased responsibility as the lone wind. Schlosberg's orchestration demands fast arpeggiated chords, virtuosic melodies, and character-driven phrases to compensate for the missing winds and brass.

Simpler Così offers sizzle & substance for Emerging Artists

Review

Of course, the success of Così fan tutte rests with the six singers and the magic they create both individually and in various combinations of duets, trios and more. For this production, two of the characters - Ferrando and Despina - are double cast, while the other four characters remain constant for the run.

"Still incredible": Robert Lepage's Nightingale

Review

Whenever you see the name Robert Lepage you can rest assured you are in for a visual treat. If you've been paying any attention to the theatre world at large you'll know that Lepage is known for turning heads and making audiences sit up and take note - this production is no exception.

Sublime heartbreak: Jesus Christ Superstar

Review

"He's a man. He's just a man." These lyrics, so central to Mary's song, seemed to me the springboard for Heath Saunders' portrayal of Jesus. In Saunders' performance we saw Jesus as a victim-of-circumstance, but in the most dire way. It wouldn't be enough to say that the vulnerability Saunders brought to the role was "relatable" or even "human"; it was sublime (or sublimated?) heartbreak.

Bashful bel canto: Norma in Houston

Review

However, in spite of all the great music, I got a sense that the company radiated severe apathy about the sheer task of putting on "yet another grand opera like this one because it is a classic which is, however, very boring." Combined with this aura, I got the sense that this production was blessed with a great many artists who only just failed, in their combined efforts, to make this production truly take off and maintain altitude.