Orlando: gender bending and the sound of androgyny in Vienna

Review

Instead, composer Olga Neuwirth chose Woolf’s Orlando, her often funny faux-autobiography about a young nobleman in the court of Elizabeth I who awakens one morning as a woman and proceeds to roam about time and space for the next 300 years.

What the Met's At-Home Gala teaches us about evolution

Op-Ed

And speaking of the participating artists - I wonder very loudly how they felt about doing this for no fee, particularly those who found out about their cancelled Met contracts through social media posts. It's quite something for Peter Gelb to not call his contracted artists when COVID-19 shut everything down, and then ask them to come help "Save The Met" with a free performance at home. Yikes.

Isolation blogging: it's &@%#ed out there

Op-Ed

I guess the most humbling thing about this is realizing how utterly in love I am with something that the rest of the world just might deem unessential. Like, in the big-scheme, unessential; the line-up for government aid is already enormous, and priorities have already become clear. The performing arts are certainly a staple of human society...but opera?

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.