There's a place for us at LOC's West Side Story

Review

Even though, of course, I knew of this story's roots in Romeo and Juliet, I was nonetheless shocked and heartbroken by these characters' deaths in the Rumble scene and then watching the rapid unraveling of Maria and Tony's lives in Act II.

Fascinating insight: rough for opera #17

Review

We are talking about an indeterminate and ever-changing tradition that has been developing for over four hundred years. Perhaps it is time to cast form aside entirely and explore where it is headed for the future.

Two different servings from the Opera Fest menu

Review

Brooklyn-based Regina Opera has taken on Verdi's Il Trovatore and though they clearly have limited resources, they have staged a first-rate, fully-realized production.

Hearing the Seldom Seen

Review

The singers playfully (or angrily) splash about, shoot each other with squirt guns and finally land dead in the (unheated) water for the violent finale.

Alkema a world-class Tosca at WNO

Review

To me, Tosca is just about a perfect piece of theater. I think it's funny that it often gets dismissed as absurdly over-the-top melodrama, especially in this moment in time when Game of Thrones is so wildly popular, and the latest Avengers instalment is the highest grossing movie in theaters.

Oper Frankfurt announces gutsy 2019-20 season

Op-Ed

As far as I'm concerned, the more Shostakovich the better. The composer belongs to a group of masters – including Scriabin and Chopin – whose work reaches vocal music devotee's ears far less than it should. Lady Macbeth's explosive score teems with a pathos that lives up to its fascinating offstage history of censorship under Stalin.

A very Canadian La bohème: the latest in Opera for Toronto

Review

The preparation for this single show can stretch over an entire season, with input from the multiple teachers and coaches who come to work with the young artists throughout the year.

Installation Handmaid's Tale a dramatic, chilling staging

Review

There is so much to like musically because Ruders stays true to Atwood's novel while finding time to let the music tell the drama on its own that it is indeed a good thing that it has finally found its cultural moment.

A lesbian chamber opera to span centuries: Pomegranate

Interview

"It shows how lovers can be so deeply bonded that they remain loyal to each other across huge time spans and are once again drawn together, even without recognizing why, just acting on instinct."

Sanitized tragedy: La traviata in Minnesota

Review

Violetta's most vulnerable moments were during the overtures behind a scrim. In the initial overture Violetta was seen revving herself up for the party between coughing fits, and before the final act Violetta dreams that Alfredo is still with her.