A case for relatable Handel: ABOC's Rinaldo

Review

I felt like I was actually in a garden surrounded by drooping blossoms, or actually at the opening of a cavernous hole. Throughout I got the sense that this was a production that put a great deal of effort into engaging the senses all at once and imparting an aura of wonderment.

The global pandemic strikes The Metropolitan Opera

Op-Ed

How sad that in announcing the Met’s 2020-21 season and the addition of the first European tour by the Met Orchestra in 20 years, it has taken this course. 26 opera companies in North America have waived Force Majeure and many have adopted plans to pay their soloists at least 50% of their fees.

Marian's Song: a poignant, hopeful message

Review

Some variant of this sentence appears in many a history textbook at some point, but only rarely can it hope to make the sheer impact that Marian's Song did in Houston Grand Opera's world premiere performance.

Talking with singers: Helen Charlston

Interview

"'Good singing' is getting the very best out of your voice; a partnership between a solid technique and a need to let your voice be heard. We all only have our own sound, and there is nothing more thrilling than listening to singers who let their voice flood out direct to our hearts."

An enduring Beethoven's Ninth with the Vancouver Academy of Music

Review

Under the assured baton of conductor emeritus Leslie Dala, the program brought together the young professional-level orchestra with the veteran vocals of amateur Vancouver Bach Choir, along with four professional soloists, and featured a delightful performance of Concerto No. 4 by Ian Parker at the keys

Agrippina and the elephants in the room

Review

This production doesn’t need that dumpster fire when it can rummage through an abundance of its own trash. Quite simply the elephant is an acknowledgment that bad behavior by people in power is timeless.

Solid & simple Così fan tutte from English Touring Opera

Review

This performance of Mozart’s Così fan tutte marks the start of English Touring Opera’s spring tour which will also feature Handel’s Giulio Cesare as well as Bach’s St. John Passion in an impressive eighteen cities across the country. ETO’s extensive tours are the direct result of their clear mandate which is to bring accessible opera to cities and theatres across England where it would otherwise not be performed.

How to Fail as a Popstar: a cautionary tale

Review

Amid performing arts circles, regardless of genre, it's almost too raw for someone who hasn't "made it" to discuss why they "failed". It's easy for us to digest wistful stories of bad producers or embarrassing live shows when they come from the super-famous, like the humbling anecdotes offered to fans by the Taylor Swifts and Lady Gagas of the world.

Well-cast vignettes in POV's Flight

Review

In Flight, the characters arrive at the airport one by one, en route to their various destinations, and bringing their various problems with them. As all flights are cancelled due to a huge storm, and the passengers are stranded in the airport, their problems come to the forefront and are highlighted by each character in turn.

Jacqueline: Come for the music, stay for everything else

Review

The opera provides two alternative voices to reveal the complexities of du Pré's personhood; music written for the voice in a way reveals her public personality, along with hear-say gathered from relationships and journals, while music written for the cello presents a quieter inner voice, the private room of her spiritual thoughts.