Opera in the age of Netflix

Op-ed

What if there was a more direct way to accomplish this goal? What would that look like? To all the opera companies, self-producers, recitalists, and alike, let me offer the following suggestions.

Anxiety, Art, and Purpose

Op-ed

I know a lot of my friends and colleagues struggle with performance anxiety, and I wanted to share my thoughts here in the hopes that it might help someone else who is struggling, and open up a dialogue about anxiety and art, which I think for many of us go hand in hand.

Fleming enchants: luscious morsels of post-opera career

Review

When soprano Renée Fleming offers a concert without any operatic repertoire, you wonder what the "People's Diva" will sing. Not surprisingly, in front of a capacity crowd, Fleming delivered with luscious morsels of her career after opera.

Glitter and flair: Queens of the Night

Review

It is best not to overanalyze the production, as it was, for lack of better words, a wickedly entertaining opera-themed drag show. The evening's show followed a plotline involving Martha Graham Cracker's desire to impress her crush, Blythely Oratonio (Stephanie Blythe's drag king alter ego.) Throughout the performance, there were musical numbers, which were very clever arrangements, combining pop music with operatic motives (such as "I Want To Break Free" combined with "Quando m'en vo.")

Talking with singers: Morris Robinson

"At the age of 29, I auditioned for the Choral Arts Society in Washington where I sang some of the pieces I did in high school. Norman Scribner, the director for many years of the Choral Arts Society sat with his mouth open and told me there weren't many people who could make a sound like that."

The astonishing product: Glass Handel at O18

Review

As the audience made their way to seats, there was a rising sense of tension. We had been informed at least six times that we would be moved around during this multimedia event. One had to question why there were so many disclaimers. Do we really want a stranger moving our chairs during a performance? Well, it turns out, yes we do.

Racette an unmissable Elle in O18's Ne Quittez Pas

Review

Delivering a one-person show is an arduous creative task to accomplish, and Racette does it with astonishing success. When the monodrama is finally over, it takes a moment to return to reality, as Racette has completely transported her audience to Poulenc and Cocteau's world.

LA Opera season opens with The Rodrigo Show

Review

Morris Robinson hits his third home run in a row at LA Opera as the blind, self-righteous, single-minded Grand Inquisitor. Having wowed us as Zaccaria in Nabucco, and Sparafucile in Rigoletto, he’s become a regular at LA Opera and he lifts any production to the sublime in any role that he plays.

Odyssey Opera's grand La reine de Saba a great season opener

Review

Odyssey Opera's work restored all of the finales of the middle three acts to their complete forms, with a note in the program adding that they believe most of the material they restored had never been heard prior to their performance. That this content was cut to begin with should come as an absolute shock: the restored content felt absolutely vital to how the work unfolds dramatically.

Don't miss: Countertenor Madness!

News

The concert - aptly titled Countertenor Madness! - is likely to be a crash course in what makes the countertenor one of opera's most exciting voice types.